Diagnosis, Too
This past week I have been to the allergist, gotten a chest X-ray, and then had a high resolution CT scan. This coming week I go to the lung specialist with films in hand. Here is what I know and don’t know.
Known:
1. I still have pneumonia (that’s seven weeks since it was first seen on an X-ray).
2. My coughing is much better. I don’t cough much and can lie down to sleep most of the time. I am not taking the codeine medicine to aid sleep.
3. I don’t have whooping cough (even though lots of you voted for that diagnosis) or asthma.
4. I don’t have allergies that would cause this. Had full panel of tests and no biggies showed up.
Unknown:
1. My diagnosis. No one has yet to figure out what I have so they don’t know how to treat it. Various theories that have been proposed by my internist, allergist, and lung specialists include:
a. Viral pneumonia with after effects that should go away soon. We’re into week 10. “Soon” is no longer an option.
b. Post-viral coughing that should go away when the weather gets and stays warm. Still possible, but unlikely with continuation of the pneumonia.
c. Asthma. Nope. Lack of medicines doing anything to help and evidence from lung function tests say “no.”
d. Whooping cough. Blood test is negative and I still have pneumonia, not a sign of whooping cough.
e. Acid reflux. The ultimate verdict is still out on this one. I am still taking Prevacid.
f. Stomach lymphoma (because of all the coughing spasms for the length of time I had them). But I have not have coughing spasms for a week and the pneumonia seems more likely as the problem, not a lymphoma, but it’s always a possibility.
g. Hypersentivity pneumonitis. This is a new one. I had blood drawn this past week for a special panel that would show if I have this relatively rare disease. If so, it’s a big problem for me since it involves keeping away from exposure to organic materials (read that as barn, horse care, hay, etc.). The new CT scan should also shed some light on this.
h. My vet offered heart worms as a possibility. At this point, she could be right.
2. Why nothing they have given me seems to cure me. It's possible that some or all of these have had some partial effect, but the pneumonia is still there.I have taken or am taking:
a. A round of antibiotics.
b. Two rounds of steroids over 12 days.
c. Asthma inhalers both general and acute.
d. Various antihistamines, allergy medicines, steroid nasal sprays.
e. A general lung dry inhaler.
f. Acid reflux medicine.
g. A sinus cleanser (you gotta see this apparatus, and it might even help).
3. Whether I am being used as a human Guinea pig by the Bush administration in its Wear on Tear or who knows what else in the WMD department.
And, in case you were wondering, I go to an ENT doctor a week from now. Hey, gotta give all the specialties their shot at this.
Known:
1. I still have pneumonia (that’s seven weeks since it was first seen on an X-ray).
2. My coughing is much better. I don’t cough much and can lie down to sleep most of the time. I am not taking the codeine medicine to aid sleep.
3. I don’t have whooping cough (even though lots of you voted for that diagnosis) or asthma.
4. I don’t have allergies that would cause this. Had full panel of tests and no biggies showed up.
Unknown:
1. My diagnosis. No one has yet to figure out what I have so they don’t know how to treat it. Various theories that have been proposed by my internist, allergist, and lung specialists include:
a. Viral pneumonia with after effects that should go away soon. We’re into week 10. “Soon” is no longer an option.
b. Post-viral coughing that should go away when the weather gets and stays warm. Still possible, but unlikely with continuation of the pneumonia.
c. Asthma. Nope. Lack of medicines doing anything to help and evidence from lung function tests say “no.”
d. Whooping cough. Blood test is negative and I still have pneumonia, not a sign of whooping cough.
e. Acid reflux. The ultimate verdict is still out on this one. I am still taking Prevacid.
f. Stomach lymphoma (because of all the coughing spasms for the length of time I had them). But I have not have coughing spasms for a week and the pneumonia seems more likely as the problem, not a lymphoma, but it’s always a possibility.
g. Hypersentivity pneumonitis. This is a new one. I had blood drawn this past week for a special panel that would show if I have this relatively rare disease. If so, it’s a big problem for me since it involves keeping away from exposure to organic materials (read that as barn, horse care, hay, etc.). The new CT scan should also shed some light on this.
h. My vet offered heart worms as a possibility. At this point, she could be right.
2. Why nothing they have given me seems to cure me. It's possible that some or all of these have had some partial effect, but the pneumonia is still there.I have taken or am taking:
a. A round of antibiotics.
b. Two rounds of steroids over 12 days.
c. Asthma inhalers both general and acute.
d. Various antihistamines, allergy medicines, steroid nasal sprays.
e. A general lung dry inhaler.
f. Acid reflux medicine.
g. A sinus cleanser (you gotta see this apparatus, and it might even help).
3. Whether I am being used as a human Guinea pig by the Bush administration in its Wear on Tear or who knows what else in the WMD department.
And, in case you were wondering, I go to an ENT doctor a week from now. Hey, gotta give all the specialties their shot at this.
posted by Bud Hirsch at 9:52 PM
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