Adult onset/post-viral asthma....experiences please?

[Elibean]

dh has had two lots of antibiotics for suspected chest infections, two x-rays (revealing nothing sinister), one lot of prednisolone and codeine syrup for post-viral asthma (sorted him out, then he caught a cold 3 days later and it started all over again). He's got inhalers now, one a step up form the blue salbutamol one (green?), and a brown steroid one.

He's booked to see a lung specialist in a couple of weeks, but meantime is having a really hard time functioning....very phlegmy, short of breath at times, horrible cough especially mid-morning (but never at night).

Does this sound like virus + asthma, or does anyone have any other ideas/tips? Its been going on for about 7 weeks, bar the week on steroids/codeine...

Aw Elibean - how unfair

Don't know about green salbutamol but is that a reliever?

The brown is a preventer & both should help

I have known lots of people be on inhalers post infections - it seems to be instead of coughing all winter. They usually stop taking the inhalers over time

Hi Katy, sorry to see you're not sleeping but glad you found the cause

Yes, its a reliever - seems to help, but not as much as we thought it would. A&E gave him a salbutamol nebulizer, which helped more. Its probably a matter of time, just so disabling now - bit scary for someone who's never had asthma before. Thanks for telling me about others you know, thats sort of reassuring.

Sounds as though your chest is taking a long time to recover too, here's hoping you and dh both get well soon!

They may put him on Prednisilone if they do grab it with both hands

Although it is an oral steroid it will fix him very quickly (IMO) & as long as he eats carefully he won't put on much weight (mind you if he is like me atm, he will have lost pounds)

I'm still not better (thanks for the good wishes) but I have 2 more doses - so fingers crossed (but I have the vilest taste in my mouth, I have been cleaning my teeth about 5 times a day & that is the abs too)

I get this - it's gross and really whacks you out. Since I've been on Symbicort (it changed my quality of life) however I have been much better.
I had my annual wheezy weekend 2 weeks ago after a cold and I'm still not great but I've learnt over the years (including a few hospitalisations) that I need to take it easy.
What works for me is

Never sniffing (uber gross but it helps prevernt my productive cough)
Cut out dairy for a few days
Sudofed thick and chesty (but not the non-drowsy one)
Never lie on your back
Accept it exhausts you and don't overdo it

Hope your dh feels better soon.

Also getting someone to pummel your back over where your lungs are (lean forward) can be very relieving.

Thanks, Katy and Swedishmum, will pass all this on to dh.

He did have oral pred, Katy, for 10 days - high dose - along with codeine linctus. It helped a lot (albeit made him bonkers ) but he caught another cold four days later and was back to square 1.

Swedishmum, he sleeps on his back all the time - and never coughs at night: did think this might not be a great idea!

I have just been diagnosed with post viral asthma, had 7 days on steroids, and all that time I had to do peak flow.

I couldn't really breathe when I finally admitted defeat over my "chest infection" (self diagnosed) which usually clears itself and the steroids helped.

Went and saw the nurse for post diagnosis check up and she isn't happy with my peak flow readings so I have to go back in 2 weeks.

I am 34 so apparently should be blowing 450-490. At the start I was blowing 350, now in the mornings I can only do 270 but I can blow 400 at the end of the day.

I have completely spring cleaned my bedroom, hoovered under the bed, dusted everything, bought new duvet (from feather to washable microfibre) but peak flow still appalling in the morning.

Is this normal? My sister has severe asthma so I have grown up around it but never had it. It was all a bit of a shock really.

I sleep on my side, seem to cough at night and the wheezing starts then too. I already have an illness that exhausts me at times so am I going to be extra tired? [horrified emoticon]

Just saw this, Fizzy, sorry to hear you've got the same diagnosis as dh. If its any consolation, he's feeling much, much better now: it took seven weeks, but thats probably because he wasn't diagnosed accurately for ages and had two lots of antibiotics which did nothing. He's not tired at all now - so either the (higher dose) salbutamol inhalers, plus the preventive one (steroid), are doing the trick, or it was mostly viral-induced and the asthma has gone with the virus at last.

Actually, having read about whooping cough recently, I wondered if it could have been that all along....but you have absolutely described dh's symptoms, apart from the fact that he never coughed at night, and was much worse late morning and early evening.

If you do'nt feel better soon, I would recommend going to GP and asking for a re-evaluation of your asthma needs....dh needed a step up from the first line of defence, even after ten days of oral pred. Hope you do feel better soon though!

ps his peak flow readings were very similar to yours, and his tiredness went hand in hand with low oxygen levels. Now he can breathe again, his energy levels are fine.

thanks Elibean, I do think I will be back to the docs soon as I have caught another cough so think that has gone straight to my chest again.

I was in denial really when she told me she thought it was asthma. She even handed me the stethoscope so I could hear my lungs! Had to contain myself, I often play the patient for my son who is 5 with his toy doctor's kit, was great to have a real stethoscope

I sound like I am playing a tune when I breathe out right at the end of the breath. It was actually DH who booked my doctor's appointment as he was sick of me coughing and sounding like I was playing the bag pipes at night

Think I do need an inhaler just to help. Shall get myself off to the docs.

Glad to hear that your DH is much better, I didn't think about the oxygen levels. Makes sense.