Cold/Flu cough asthma & prednisone

Hi Debbie, sorry I can't really help you, I have no medical training, but in March last year I caught my first cold while on 10 mgs of prednisone. I'd been diagnosed with PMR in the dec 2013. This cold I thought went away after 2 weeks only for either the same cold to rear up again or I caught a different one barely a week later. That one went away after about 3 weeks only for me to catch another cold or for one of the previous 2 colds to flare up again after a about 1 week and that one lasted about 3 weeks. On all 3 

occassions I had a terrible cough and even after all the symtoms went away I still had a very coughing chest for months later. Prednisone I don think makes a cold cough worse I just think that because it lowers our immune system illnesses etc take abit longer to heal. 

I don't have asthma so obviously in your case things might be different.

i hope you get well soon. Christina

Sorry Debbie if I could just add I took lots of lemon and honey drinks, home made with fresh lemons, also warm milk with a large teaspoon of honey, yummy. And just a few tunes, the sweets, here and there. Christina

I have mild asthma usually increased if it goes into Broncitus they have given me Pres.for 7 to 10 day before I had PMR.  If this helps, I wourld say you should see a Dr.

Debbie,

I am convinved that prednisone affects each of us differently.  When I had my coughing spell, I didn't get a lot of people here that thought it was related to the prednisone, but 6 months later my throat still feels funny and my voice is a bit changed.  It feels very "dry."  I might be wrong, but I think it's the prednisone.

You shouldn't really be using the emergency inhaler more as far as I know, you should maybe up the preventer inhaler - it takes a few days to have its full effect. That's the instructions the 3 asthmatics in my family have.at least. The emergency inhaler isn't going to soothe a cough - it just makes the airways wider and the preventer has steroid in it to reduce the inflammation that makes you cough. Have you tried inhaling - the old fashioned way over a bowl of hot water with a towel over your head? It does help -  in winter central heating dries out the air and that irritates the airways.

Are you sure it is the cold/asthma? Reflux can also cause cough, especially at night (yes, I  know that asthma cough is also typically at night) and is often more likely with pred. Is the cough productive? If it is just a tickly cough then maybe a cough linctus with codeine or somehting might soothe it - ask the pharmacist (not the counter staff). If it is productive you shouldn't try to stop it, it is there to cough up the mucus and get it out of the airways. A cold is a cold, lasts about 2 weeks, but an associated cough can last for weeks I'm afraid.

Your pred shouldn't make your asthma worse - the preventer inhaler is topical steroid, if asthma gets really bad then you would get a higher dose to calm the airways down. 

Hi Debbie

I am currently on 40mg Pred for GCA and caught a chesty cold a couple of days ago. I went to the chemist to stock up on cough mixture and Sudafed, but my excellent chemist told me not to take Sudafed, but to add a few drops of Olbas Oil to a bowl of hot water and inhale the steam. He said to only use the Olbas Oil for 3 days and then just hot water.

I do this before I go to bed and it does help.

I don't know whether, as an asthmatic, you can use Olbas Oil, so check first.

Thanks all for your suggestions.  That lemon and honey sounds good.  I have noticed that warm things like cocoa and oatmeal sooth the asthma feeling.  But I have used my inhaler about 3 times a day, just to open up my breathing.  I guess the coughing is not as bad as the tightness that makes me feel like I'm not going to be able to breathe, and the more I cough the more that feeling appears.  I think I will be OK.  I will try the hot water thing, too.

 

I am hoping Prednisone doesn't make a cold/cough worse :o I've had a cold/cough since early November (12 weeks this week) and after many visits to the Dr, calling 111 (waste of time), xray, I saw the Dr again today and he has given me Prednisone to ease the cough/cold and said I probably have adult-onset asthma and come back in 2 weeks of taking Prednisone.  I was hoping to get better not worse!  Like you I have had several episodes where I coughed so hard I scared myself, hence the 111 call and advice from a Paramedic to call 999 next time so someone can deal with it before I do injury.

For those with the cold/cough virus, I hope you get better sooner than I have.