Hoarseness, sore throat, + PND, Oh my!

gcsjr

It's way too early to worry about anything.

While your GP is probably technically correct that you're having PND, the bigger question is what is causing the PND (PND is a symptom of something else, not a specific disease). The most common causes of PND are allergies, a sinus infection (which would also have other noticeable symptoms) or acid reflux (GERD).

If you suspect allergies, you may just want to try taking Zyrtec (or generic Cetirizine) for a few days to see if your symptoms improve.

At this point a CT scan is a bit much. You would be better off to see the ENT so the doctor can do an endoscopic exam to see if there is any noticeable inflammation of your sinuses before getting a CT scan.

It's also very possible (even likely) that your symptoms are the result of acid reflux. The throat clearing and sore throat are common symptoms of GERD and, if you don't have noticeable nasal congestion or a runny nose, that's the most likely culprit. If there's no evidence of sinus inflammation the doctor will likely prescribe a PPI (like Nexium, Aciphex, etc.) for a couple of months to give your throat time to heal (the throat clearing and sore throat are symptoms of an area of irritation caused by digestive acid reaching your esophagus and it takes time for those areas to heal).

The CT scan and bloodwork seem like a bit much until you've seen an ENT and eliminated some of the more common, and most likely causes of your symptoms.

Titchou

I had the same thing happen out of the blue. I did a round of allergy injections several years ago and had been fine. Then all of a sudden, this seeming PND with throat clearing. Ticked me off, to say the least. Turns out it's my new blood pressure med that's causing it! Yikes! And it's a $4 generic so i don't want to change. A generic decongestant in the AM seems to take care of it for most of the day.

spima3

I'm thinking the Dr may have ordered the bloodwork and CT scan because he couldn't get me an app't until the end of Oct w/ an ENT. I haven't had blood work in a while so he might have suggested that eventually anyway. Actually, since the ENT is so far away, a "good" CT scan would probably make me feel a little better. Luckily, I get that done on Tues.

I have a list of ENT's in our network that I am going to start calling and seeing if I can find an earlier app't. Of course, with the long weekend I can't start that until Tues.

I understand about acid reflux. I checked into that but would not have any symptoms associated with that, except for the hoarseness and sore throat.
Could acid reflux be a problem without the heartburn, etc.?

Titchou

Absolutely it can be present without those symtoms. A friend of mine's GP thought hers was asthma and maybe bronchitis. Treated her and treated her and it never got better. Fianlyl sent her to my allergist (he's the court of last resort for everyone here) and it wasn't asthma - it was acid reflux. Changed up her eating schedule, starting taking digestive enzymes and she's doing great. No cough, no SOB.

gcsjr

It's very possible. LPR (Laryngopharyngeal Reflux) is a form of reflux that is often called "silent reflux" because it does not cause heartburn or the other common symptoms of GERD. Here's a list of the most common symptoms of LPR (that sounds very similar to your original post):

• Continual throat clearing
• Chronic throat irritation
• Chronic cough
• Hoarseness
• Excessive phlegm the throat
• Excessive phlegm the throat
• Difficulty Swallowing (Dysphagia)
• Constant sensation of something in the throat
• Swallowed food comes back up

I don't want to sound discouraging but, until you have an ENT review the CT scan, how are you going to know whether it's a "good" CT scan or not. The radiologist report generally won't give a diagnosis and will only note any obvious radiological changes on the scan, not whether they might (or might not be) the cause of your symptoms.

spima3

Well, I'm thinking a "good" CT scan would mean no obvious signs of abnormal growths. I would think even my GP would be able to see that.

For me, at least, I would find that encouraging.

Thanks to all for taking the time to respond. It has been helpful to hear from real people and not just info gleamed from websites. It is a nerve wracking weekend and I think I need to stop searching those websites; TMI in too many cases!

For now I think I'm just going to practice a little denial wait to deal with it next week, since I can't do anything about it anyway.

If anyone's interested I'll post after the test results start coming in. Again, thx.