What kind of specialist would handle this?

[Polgara1111]

I keep getting sick and then getting the 3 week cough from hell.  Then I get one or two weeks off and it starts up again.  Stronger in winter for sure.  I get this same illness probalby 6 times per year, so I spend roughly 18 weeks a year with a hacking cough.

Some friends have suggested I might have asthma or post nasal drip syndrome or something.  My general practitioner keeps giving me antibiotics which do nothing.  i want to see a specialist and figure out if I have an allergy or asthma or something else.

But should I see a pulmonary disease specialist, or an allergy/immunologist specialist?

And has anyone else had this problem and if so, did you cure it or find out the cause?  It's driving me nuts.  I'm always sick. :(

[tinuviel_k]

I got sick SO OFTEN before I had my vitamin D levels checked, discovered I was very low, and started supplementing. I would get sick mainly in the late fall, winter, and spring. A cold every month, sometimes two a month. it was horrible. I also started to get hive outbreaks every time I got a cold, which is what prompted me to see a doctor.

We checked my vitamin D and it was very low. I started supplementing with 4000 IU and had my levels checked again. I wound up taking 15000 IU 5 days a week in the winter and spring, and 5000 IU a day in the summer (I live in the north and it is cloudy a lot).

Three years ago I was getting one or more colds a month. This year I've only had one mild cold since school started!

[sbgrace]

Pulmonology would be best for asthma (that was my issue with coughs like that) but in some areas pulmonology is a really hard specialty to get in to see (short of hospitalization). If your doctor will prescribe an inhaler that would tell you a lot (ie does it stop the coughing...). If willing he/she could help you get a peak flow monitor as well...if your peak flow is better post inhaler than before it would be indicative of asthma or at least that's how it works in a pulmonology office. We use a home peak flow monitor to watch my son's asthma.
Does it feel like post-nasal drip--are you having nasal symptoms and drainage? If you suspect allergies you could try allergy meds like zyrtec (or see an allergist...in my experience they do skin prick and then suggest allergy meds). If it's more likely infection maybe ENT? I don't know!

Some allergists offices have pulmonologists on board. Our allergist is both pulmonology and allergy. That might be ideal in your situation if there is someone!

[Polgara1111]

Hmm, actually my Vitamin D levels were tested and they were super low.  Maybe that's the lynchpin to my problems.  Thanks for sharing that info.  That seems like an easy fix.  

I was allergy tested like 10 years ago and aside from dust, cock roaches, sage, and bermuda grass, I am not allergic to anything else.

I think I'll try a pulmonary person for now.  Thanks!!

[sbgrace]

My son has a lot more problems with his dust allergy in the winter though I really don't understand why.

On the vitamin D..I'd strongly consider 10,000 IU of D3 per day. I had horrible asthma issues in the winter before I corrected my D deficiency. I've had minimal issues since. Anyway, up to 10,000 IU per day is safe no matter your level for a healthy adult. I'd stay just under that unless a person knows they are low. At this level of supplementation (using a D3 form only--not D2) you should be able to correct very quickly and it might help a lot with the cough issue. The vitamin D council website has a lot of great information on vitamin D (safety, health implications, etc.)

[kjbrown92]

my daughter and I both have dust allergies and ours are a lot worse in the winter too. mostly because the house is closed up I think, so less fresh air. And also, if you live in a place where you're using heat, then the heat dries out your nasal passages and makes you more likely to have problems. My kids all presents with coughs for allergies (though DD1 also sneezes). Our doctor looked up the nose, and he said reddish/pinkish meant cold/virus, and bluish/purpleish meant allergies.

[kjbrown92]

Also, did you do anything to mitigate the dust allergies - mattress/pillow encasers. No mini blinds or heavy drapes. A good hepa filter on your vacuum cleaner, wood floors vs. carpets, etc.?

[Polgara1111]

got some albuterol, sildec pm-de syrup, and prednisone.  Feeling better already but I'm peeing every 20-30 minutes like with a full bladder.  I hope that doesn't go on all night.  Don't know which one is causing that problem.