Chronic Cough & Upper Airway Therapy Adelaide
Chronic cough is a cough that lasts longer than three months, despite medical treatment. People often describe this type of cough as starting with a tickle in the throat and find it difficult to control. Having a chronic cough can be frustrating and impact on your day to day life. Chronic throat clearing and globus (the feeling of a lump in the throat) are closely linked symptoms often driven by muscle tension, reflux, or laryngeal hypersensitivity.
At Adelaide Voice Therapy, our speech pathologists follow current evidence in cough treatment techniques. Your speech pathologist will work with you to identify triggers and teach you techniques to reduce and eliminate your cough. We will also work with your medical professionals to develop a treatment plan to help you breathe easier and control your cough.
We recommend that you see a GP, Ear Nose and Throat Specialist and/or Respiratory Physician to investigate possible causes of your cough. This will assist us in targeting therapy appropriately.
We offer specialised treatment for patients with chronic cough & airway disorders.
We treat a range of symptoms including:
A chronic cough may be due to hypersensitivity of the larynx. This causes frequent coughing due to the feeling of irritation in the throat.
You may be experiencing some of the following issues:
- An irritable cough lasting more than 3 months with no other medical cause
- Coughing triggered by talking, laughing, post-nasal drip or reflux
- The need to frequently clear mucous in the throat by coughing or throat-clearing
Inducible Laryngeal Obstruction (ILO) & Exercise Induced Laryngeal Obstruction (EILO)
Inducible Laryngeal Obstruction (ILO) (Also known as Vocal Cord Dysfunction / Paradoxical Vocal Cord Movement)
Inducible laryngeal obstruction is a condition where the vocal cords move into the airway during breathing, narrowing the space and making it more difficult to breathe.
You may experience:
- Sudden onset of difficulty breathing
- A rough and strained voice
- Throat tightness
- Noisy breathing
Breathing difficulty triggered by:
- Smells
- Exercise or exertion e.g walking up a flight of stairs
- Perfumes
- Changes in air temperature
- Dust or exposure to chemicals
- Laughing or talking
- Reflux
- Stress
Exercise Induced Laryngeal Obstruction (EILO)
What is EILO:
EILO is a condition where the vocal cords move into the airway during exercise, narrowing the space and making it more difficult to breathe. It is most often seen in young athletes, both males and females but can occur at any stage across the lifespan.
You may experience:
- noisy breathing and severe breathlessness during exercise
- A feeling of chest or throat tightness
- A croaky or strained voice during exercise
- Feeling of a lump in the throat
- Breathlessness that is not relieved by asthma medication