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Mucous

Posted , 7 users are following.

Lizfor
Lizfor

Does anyone have problems with their mucous membranes when taking prednisolone? I have a sore and burning mouth, mucous drooping down the back of my nose, a sore stomach and I’m coughing up a lot of clear phlegm from my lungs.

I thought it may be the Lansoprazole that was causing this as a sore mouth and stomach is listed as a common side effect but could it be the prednisolone? And would that affect the lungs?

 

0 likes, 24 replies

24 Replies

  • EileenH
    EileenH Lizfor

    Posted

    I have found a thread on the internet about the same thing and a doctor replied: "What you describe is uncommon but not unheard of.  What you are experiencing may reflect increased mucous clearance, rather than increased mucous production.  The real question to be answered is, do you breathe easier after a course of prednisone than you did at the time when the prednisone therapy was started (presumably because of worsened breathing?) Sounds like that may be the case.  If so, a few days of coughing-up otherwise retained mucous, may be worth it if your breathing is improved after a course of prednisone."

    Which basically is what I was going to suggest anyway.

    However - what you describe could also be due to silent reflux. Even though you are taking a PPI, PPIs don't work to stop acid production for everyone and they don't stop reflux that is due to a physical cause, like a weak sphincter at the top of your stomach.

    Burning mouth syndrome can also be due to thrush - that is not uncommon with pred and you may not be able to see the typical white patches that everyone expects.

    • Lizfor
      Lizfor EileenH

      Posted

      Thanks Eileen, I'm off to the doctor's this afternoon as once again leukocytes and blood in urine so there is something going on somewhere. The mucous is definitely easier to cough up then formerly. Will see what he says and will probably get back to you with another set of questions.😕

    • EileenH
      EileenH Lizfor

      Posted

      Has that been investigated thoroughly? 
    • Lizfor
      Lizfor EileenH

      Posted

      This time it was decided that the blood etc. was a reaction to all the stuff that is going on with my body at the moment. I have had complete blood tests and it was not shown to be another infection.

      I think for the mucous they are going for the reflux option and I am now taking Lansoprazole twice a day. So we shall see if that works.

      At the moment I have been to the surgery or the hospital every day this week, so they are certainly looking after me. 

    • EileenH
      EileenH Lizfor

      Posted

      Possibly not an infection - but there are other things it could be that blood tests won't show.

  • robin11917
    robin11917 Lizfor

    Posted

    Post nasal drip my doctor called it and as I apparently have large sinuses this is not unusual to have. But I found that this year since starting Pred it has been much thicker. It is worse if I have any sort of dairy products so I try to have none of those iafter midday. Nothing seems to stop it and I try to not take other drugs. One is enough for me. Mine is not from my lungs and I do not have sore mouth but I do have GORD which I mainly manage to control with diet and by eating much smaller meals. What fits on a saucer is enough for a meal for me. Eileen may have some further suggestions on how to deal with this. She has been so helpful with advice on many other areas.

     

    • Lizfor
      Lizfor robin11917

      Posted

      Hi Robin, I did wonder if post-nasel drip was collecting at the top of my lungs overnight whilst I am lying down and then being coughed up in the day. It is like having a cold without the germs. Will see what the doctor says this afternoon. Thank you.
    • Lizfor
      Lizfor robin11917

      Posted

      It seems that it may be reflux and they have doubled the Lansoprazole. I am on 50 mg prednisolone a day which they think may be thinning the stomach wall. I seem to be swallowing mucous most of the day. 🙁 I am hungry most of the time but have managed to keep to the same weight I have been for years by eating my usual amount. 

    • Mrs_CJ
      Mrs_CJ Lizfor

      Posted

      Hi Lizfor

      I discovered the sinusy issues I have had for many many years were silent acid reflux from reading this forum. Like you I have constant post nasal drip plus coughing, throat clearing, sinus congestion and sinus pressure, sometimes sore throat and unsettled stomach. 

      Mayo Clinic and Cleveland Clinic sites have good suggestions. Many sites give lists of foods to avoid and some sites point out that you need to experiment to find out which foods are YOUR triggers.  A site called Reflux MD has lots of easy to understand info.

      We were out of town recently and eating out 3 meals a day.....and my symptoms have been so much worse. They seem to flare up quicker than it takes to calm them down again but I'm hoping getting back on my safe foods will get things back under control soon.  For me it can take some time for this to happen.....perhaps because there is an unidentified trigger food still in my diet....sigh

      I do not take medication for my reflux but rather control it with diet. I have enough side effects from my Pred (for PMR).

    • Lizfor
      Lizfor Mrs_CJ

      Posted

      Thank you Mrs CJ. I shall go to the clinic sites you suggest for the lists of foods. This condition is SO annoying, like having a cold without the germs.

       

    • EileenH
      EileenH Lizfor

      Posted

      Carbohydrates and dairy are felt to make reflux worse for a lot of people - some claim cutting carbs alone can make a massive difference to reflux.
  • mimi1950
    mimi1950 Lizfor

    Posted

    I have exactly the same symptoms -sores on the tip of my tongue, burning tongue and post nasal drip that I've had for months. I also have the constant sensation that I have to clear my throat I went to an ENT and after sticking

    a camera down my throat and nose, he said it was acid reflux. All these symptoms are probably not serious but so, so uncomfortable.

    • Lizfor
      Lizfor mimi1950

      Posted

      Mimi, your experience closely resembles mine and now they have come to the same conclusion. No camera but two of them agreed and they have doubled the tablets so it should improve. 🙂

    • mimi1950
      mimi1950 Lizfor

      Posted

      I will try doubling the dose of the stomach lining protector... Thank you, lizfor
    • EileenH
      EileenH Lizfor

      Posted

      Lizfor and mimi both:

      If things DON'T improve on a PPI (omeprazole, lansoprazole and co) it may pay to try Zantac/ranitidine instead of or as well as the PPI. PPIs have been shown to not work well/not work at all for about a third of patients. 

    • Lizfor
      Lizfor mimi1950

      Posted

      I have to take one in the morning and one twelve hours later, not two at once. I have been told I can use Gaviscon if neccessary from two hours after taking tablet.  Lets hope that sorts out both of us. 🙂

    • Lizfor
      Lizfor EileenH

      Posted

      Well early days yet but I am wondering if the PPI's are all the same or, if it doesn't improve, are there different formulations of PPI's so that it might be worth changing?

    • EileenH
      EileenH Lizfor

      Posted

      I think they all do the same thing in terms of their mechanism. What happens with a single dose though is that the pumps in the cells that are inhibited renew so acid secretion starts again until the next dose. Taking the dose twice daily has a better effect - and then it takes 5-7 days to really get things under control. What I meant was that if they don't work for you after that time it might help to try the ranitidine - it does the same thing but in a different way.

    • mimi1950
      mimi1950 EileenH

      Posted

      Is it possible to have acid reflux without "heart burn" or acid fluid regurgitating from the stomach? Is it possible to have acid reflux with just post nasal drip? I didn't have hearburn until I took pred. without food one day. Before that, I just had the post nasal drip and the sensation that I have go either swallow or cough up tbe mucus that is constantly lodged in my throat.

    • EileenH
      EileenH mimi1950

      Posted

      Yes - it is usually called silent reflux. The posh term is laryngopharyngeal reflux. Google it - you may have a bad taste from the bile bubbling up but not necessarily.
    • robin11917
      robin11917 EileenH

      Posted

      Thank you Eileen for this information. GP really takes the approach I should just live with it but it is very annoying and I often wake up choking if I have rolled onto my back. Only occassionally have any bile or such regurgitated and that I think because I have eaten excessively at the evening meal.

      ​Thank you once again for the advice you post. I get more from you and the comments of other sufferers than I do from my GP.

      ​Best wishes to you and yours for the festive season

       

    • Lizfor
      Lizfor EileenH

      Posted

      Thank you Eileen. I've just googled this and it fits so well. I think I may have a weak sphincter,  I have noticed if I bend down say to pick something up off the floor in the morning after breakfast fluid can flow up into my mouth without effort if I am not careful. Lets hope the ppi x2 works.

    • EileenH
      EileenH Lizfor

      Posted

      The higher dose PPI may stop acid production - but if the problem is hiaitus hernia or a weak gastric sphincter then the regurgitation will continue and can still cause problems. Worth discussing it with the doctor - and if one GP won't listen, try another if you can.

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