Is coughing after surgery normal?

[Woomba]

I had surgery on Wednesday under general anaesthetic. Ever since I’ve had a bit of a cough and a sore throat. Are these normal symptoms? I feel a bit jumpy as the surgery was unexpected and now I’m just on high alert for other stuff going wrong.

I’ve recently had surgery and had the same, it’s from where they intubate you during the operation

Yes. Sore throat is due to the tube they put down your throat and coughing can be a side effect of GA. Physio told me to make sure I do ten really deep breaths 3 or 4 times a day.

Yes. You actually should be coughing to clear your lungs, if you’re rarely told this!

Yes it's normal, but not very nice! I had a bit of drama when I had a catheter cardiac procedure (insertion in the groin). When coming around from the anaesthetic, I was coughing. So much so that I dislodged the tiny stitch and whoa.... it bled like crazy. Cue a team around the bed practically sitting on my thighs to stem the flow. It was the femoral artery so.... Anyway I was still groggy from the op so couldn't have cared less! All fine in the end, and the coughing and sore throat were gone in a couple of days.

Best of luck to you in your recovery.

Yes it’s normal. If you have an incision in your abdomen then — Squeezing a pillow against your tummy when you cough can help make your cough stronger and less painful

How long can I expect the cough to last for? It’s driving me mad!

@Tootops I do have incisions in my abdomen so will try the pillow trick! Thanks.

There are some pretty bold statements above…. a bit of coughing/sore throat is normal and usually settles down pretty quickly. Whether what you’re experiencing is normal depends on what operation you’ve had, what anaesthetic/airway you had, what your general health is like etc. It might just be a bit of irritability or it maybe something more serious. No-one on here can tell you any more than that so if you’re worried you should speak to a real life HCP.

Thanks @Greybeardy. My Fallopian tube ruptured due to an ectopic pregnancy. I had a general anaesthetic. At first my shoulder was painful and I was told that was normal as it’s due to gas pumped into the abdomen. I was just trying to avoid calling the ward again for something silly. I think this whole experience has left me more jumpy and nervous than I would like to be. I don’t know what’s a concern and what’s my brain spiralling anymore.