richard evans

I'm 57, non-smoker, never had any allergies or respiratory problems.
About eight months ago I developed a scratchy throat and dry cough.
The cough got worse, was diagnosed as bronchitis a week later, Treated
it with antibiotics and tussinex cough syrup. A week later it was much
worse, and chest X-ray showed pneumonia. More antibiotics, a week of
bed rest. All told, it lasted about six weeks.

A few months later, it came back. Same symptoms, not quite as severe,
but also difficulty breathing: wheezing, unable to catch my breath.
More antibiotics, various inhalers. It lasted several weeks.

Later sinus congestion and pain. MRI showed severe sinus infection.
Doc says that was the root cause, six more weeks of antibiotics. That
was a couple of months ago.

Now the coughing and wheezing is back. This time I'm on prednisone and
inhalers, The doc is now talking asthma. He says some people just
develop it late in life. (No family history.)

So, a couple of questions:

- Do people get it this late in life?

- I always thought asthma was characterized by sporadic acute episodes
of difficulty, not episodes that last 24/7 for weeks at a time. Is
there a type such as I'm experiencing?

- Is there a definitive diagnostic test?

I don't feel all that bad, just run down from constantly coughing. And
I feel bad about going out in public because I sound like I'm dying
and I'm sure people think I'm spreading Nile Virus or some such.

**** Evans

dfederic

I was diagnosed with asthma at 58. Started just as you describe. Sad but
ture. Hope you get better. Yes non-smoker,too.

joy

****,
I have a very similar medical history and lived with asthma for 10 years
until I found articles relating to adult onset after an infection and a
cure. Go to
http://www.drmirkin.com/
do a search for asthma and read the articles about adult onset.
There is a great collection of information at Jim Quinlan's web site also.
http://www.asthmastory.com/links.asp

Joy

wildthing40272

This is common.
I was diagnosed as an adult and not as a child and since was diagnosed
haven't had a moments peace. Was diagnosed 2 months ago. They say you
can live a regular life after asthma but I don't see that yet. Good
-luck to you!

HUGS!!!
PRECIOUS MARIE
JESUS LIVES!
mother of Tomas-spinal bifida, hydrophaleus, sciolosis,
right ear deafness, epilepsy (Tonic-clonic, absence, complex partial,
simple partial, atonic, myoclonic), left-field blindness, tethered cord,
allergies, ezema, lazy eye, developmentally delayed
Anastasia-ezema, allergies, nosebleeds
Antonio-mild mental disability(MMD),ezema, allergies, asthma

zanezarro

My asthma wasn't diagnosed until I was an adult, but then I realized I
had been plagued with it since high school days --- it was just mild
then. I was always called allergic, and sometimes "breathless," and for
many years a hayfever pill would stop the spells of coughing and
flooding. An inhaler was never suggested. And my father even was
asthmatic. Because I seldom wheezed, I guess I wasn't considered
asthmatic. But my father's asthma was always different than mine --- he
was a wheezer and spit-upper primarily, while I am now a combo of
wheezing and the coughing and flooding and bronkospasms. Allergy shots
do seem to help me, fortunately. And I'm lucky to benefit from all the
other asthma treatment I have that my father never had, alas --- as I
recall there was so little they could do for him. If he had an inhaler,
I never saw it.