Conflicting advice & concerns :(
Posted , 2 users are following.
Hi all
I'm writing on behalf of my 85-yr-old mum who has had this dire disease for 15 odd years after giving up a 40-yr smoking habit.
Until this year she has done very well with only 1 chest infection per year and has managed to cope using just inhalers & exercises etc. However, she had a major illness last August which meant she could no longer cope with the stairs & has now relocated to a bungalow in April past, so is inevitably exercising less & has just recently been put onto oxygen as required. With all the stress etc it was probably inevitable that her yearly infection would hit her harder than usual, but it's also different.
She was a bit slow in starting antibiotics and is sadly intolerant of most other than amoxicillin but after having used them each year for every infection it was also inevitable that eventually the bugs would become resistant and that's just what's happened this time but while she's tried the broad spectrum co-amoxiclav she again couldn't really tolerate either the tablet size or the liquid form so only got about 3 days worth into her before we (as a family) figured that perhaps 3 weeks worth of antibiotic cover of any kind had maybe worked enough to let her come off them. The only reason we were comfortable to do this was because her sputum had changed from yellow back to a white froth.
However, she decided to get her GP out to assess her yesterday and he has left her quite confused on her state - She is now again bringing up small amounts of yellow sputum which she feels indicates the infection is kicking off again - he told her to not worry until her sputum was green and even then only if it was really thick & she had a fever to go with it - VERY obvious infection signs in other words. She's panicking heavily now about what to do given that all her information says that she should begin antibiotics at the earliest signs - he says he doesn't want her taking any further antibiotics at this point (probably because of the greater risk of perhaps getting intolerant even to the amoxicillin or just because it's doing little good anyway).
So I'm just trying to figure out whether we can ignore this yellow gunk and pass it off as relatively normal for someone in end-stages of COPD, or should we seek further antibiotic cover regardless - she's understandably nervous about either option - our GP is normally 100% on the ball, & I'd be inclined to assume he's seen plenty of cases to base his opinion on, but would appreciate gaining some perspective from those of you who've more experience of the condition than we have.
Apologies for the lengthy note 
.
Romayne
0 likes, 3 replies
Vee2
Posted
So sorry to hear about your Mum's recent troubles. It is so difficult with a lung infection to achieve exercise so the most important thing is to clear any lung infection then your Mum will be best able to move around and breathe better.
An infection usually is indicated by sputum colour changes (yellow or green), a worsening of symptoms, ie breathlessness and generally feeling unwell. I was always advised to act immediately if there is any suggestion of a lung infection to try and stop it in its tracks, not to delay and always to complete the course of antibiotics or steroid tablets as is prescribed by the doc.
From my personally experience, my doc previously told me that I can increase my inhaler usage when I have a cold, infection or difficulty breathing, the dose he mentioned to me may well be different to what the doc recommends for your Mum. You may want to ask your Mum's doc about this. I am told to increase my qvar (steroid inhaler) medicine up to 3 times a day, this may not be right for your Mum but her doc should advise about what she can safely do.
To get a 2nd opinion (that other than what your Mum's GP advises) perhaps phone the local hospital and ask to speak to a respiratory nurse for some advice, also if your GP surgery has a respiratory nurse in residence ask for an appointment to see her. Better still if your Mum can access a specialising respiratory consultant, if she is getting regular exacerbations I believe she should be under a respiratory consultant, your GP can refer you or if your Mum already is on the books she should be able to access the consultant reasonably quickly.
Patient UK has a page explaining treatments concerning COPD, and if you scroll down that page [i:dc343c8d42](link below)[/i:dc343c8d42] to where is says [b:dc343c8d42]'Treatment of Exacerbations'[/b:dc343c8d42] there is some information to guide you. Further down that page, almost at the bottom you will see a link to the British Lung Foundation web which includes their helpline phone number which you may want to use for further advice and guidance.
To view the Patient UK page, go here: https://patient.info/health/Chronic-Obstructive-Pulmonary-Disease.htm
I hope this information has been of some help.
Sure do hope your Mum is feeling better soon and her condition stablises without too much more delay. Do let us know how things go.
Take good care and my good wishes to you and your Mum.
BlackKat
Posted
I've done as you suggested and have organised to speak to a respiratory nurse to try and gain some better perspective on what the likely course of her condition might be at this stage. So that will happen tomorrow all being well.
It's the infections that are obviously such a worry as the last thing any of us wants is to ignore one too long and for it to overwhelm her even further as each one drops her exercise capacity lower again. She's on a lot of sedating meds just now too which are obviously not helpful at a point where she needs to be active.
But thanks for your input - it has indeed been very helpful and insightful.
Romayne
Vee2
Posted
Thinking of you and your Mum.
I hope you managed to touch base with the respiratory nurse and received further advice and help.
The other thing you might want to request through the hospital or through GP is a visit from the Community Matron for further help and support, especially as she has had a number of infections one after the other. The community matron can call to see your Mum at home and will be able to offer treatment plan tips ie what to do at certain times such as identifying exascerbations, at what stage to act re anti bios and steroids etc. She can also advise if there are any local groups either pulmonary rehabilitation or other groups available to your Mum to help keep her mobile and social.
I hope your Mum is feeling a little better and recovering ok and that she will be able to resume her usual exercise activities real soon.
Good wishes