Dear Regular Newsletter Readers,
Welcome to another edition of our newsletter and as always I hope there is something in this week’s edition of interest to you.
I would like to continue on regaling you with my tales of woe in regards to my ongoing health issues, so below is the continuing part of my story from last week.
Upon my return to see the ENT specialist, I explained to him how I was feeling and after listening to me he told me to pop my head back and he had another look at my throat. This time I was diagnosed with laryngitis, pharyngitis and chronic sinusitis on top of the post nasal drip and Rhinitis that he had previously diagnosed me with. It seems that the laryngitis and pharyngitis were products of the post nasal drip that I was still trying to get rid of. Again, I was given a bag full of medication and told to return in 10 days. At this stage in the proceedings, I was taking up to 7 tablets three times per day (some antibiotics and some herbal) and in addition to this I was using an antihistamine spray twice a day and a powder inhaler once a day. Although I was concerned that I was taking too much medicine, I followed the course of medication I had been given, except for the powder inhaler which made me feel nauseas after using it, and 10 days later I was back to see the ENT specialist.
To begin, the ENT specialist asked me how I was feeling and I explained that the headaches I had been experiencing seemed to have abated; however, in terms of my other symptoms they were still present and they were beginning to impact greatly on my quality of life. This time I requested the ENT specialist to perform a nasal endoscopy as I felt it would provide a more accurate diagnosis and better help me get to understand my health issues and how to deal with them. After the endoscopy, the ENT specialist showed me the images of the inner part of my nasal passages and also the back of my throat; at the back of my throat it seemed I had some thick white mucous and my throat was still swollen and sore because of it. I was given some medication that I had not been previously given and told to return in 10 days. By this time, I was beginning to feel that the doctor didn’t quite know what was wrong with me and hence that was the reason he was prescribing further medications.
At this time, I once again turned to the internet to do some research and after reading quite a few accounts from people that had/have the same symptoms as me being diagnosed with GERD (Gastroeosophageal Reflux Disease) I got it into my mind about the possibility that I too was probably suffering from the same issue and for peace of mind I should have some sort of test. It was at that time that my yearly medical was coming up and I thought that this was a good opportunity to check to see whether or not I had any acid reflux issues or any other issues for that matter that may just explain why I was suffering so much with my health.
On the day of the medical I went through all the usual tests I go through and apart from having one or two rather unnerving situations that arose during the tests (situations I wrote about in a couple of my December blog entries) all seemed to be fine. In the barium swallow test that I had I believed that this test would indicate as to whether or not I had acid reflux; however, as I learned a little later on in my post heath check consultation with the doctor, the barium swallow can detect certain things, but not really acid reflux or other digestive related issues. The doctor showed me the images that the barium swallow had created of my Esophagus and entry into my stomach and I was reassured by him that they showed no signs of any abnormalities such as strictures or polyps. Under normal circumstances that would have put my mind at ease; it would not have prompted me to seek out further treatment; however, these are not normal circumstances for me.
Still suffering with all the symptoms (which I still pretty much have), despite taking the cocktail of medication that the first ENT specialist had prescribed, I decided to visit another ENT specialist to get a second opinion. My wife recommended a hospital to me that she visits from time to time when she has throat issues, more specifically throat issues connected to her vocal chords (she is an opera singer and many singers often suffer with throat issues that can affect their vocal chords) and she suggested I try to see the same ENT specialist that she usually sees. My wife made an appointment for me and off I went to the hospital.
I didn’t know at the time that there were two ENT departments at the hospital (my wife had forgotten to mention it), one regular ENT department and a department that specifically deals with vocal chord related issues, anyway, when asked by the hospital receptionist which department I required I simply said Jibika, which in English directly translates into ear, nose and throat department. I was then given a form to complete in order to try to provide information on my health issue to the doctor I would eventually see which comprised of questions and diagrams of the human anatomy on which I had to draw circles around specific parts of it to indicate the location of my issues. After doing my best to provide answers to the questions and adding one or two circles on to the diagram of the human anatomy I made my way back to the hospital receptionist and submitted the form to him. I was then directed up on to the second floor to the ear, nose and throat department and told to sit and wait until the doctor was available to see me. During the time I was waiting I was requested to complete a form with questions on it relating to my experiences with Covid-19, Delta and Omicron of which there are none to mention, which I duly filled out and continued my wait to see the doctor.
After about a 20 minute wait my name was called out and in I went to see the doctor. I explained about my symptoms (dry, sore red throat, dry tongue, blocked nasal passages, a feeling of something stuck at the back of my throat, congestion, headaches, bad taste in my mouth and bad breath etc) and that I had previously visited another ENT doctor. I told the doctor that I was hoping for a second opinion on the previous doctor’s diagnosis. I showed the doctor the medicines I had been prescribed and was currently taking and I asked if she could pop an endoscope up my nose to see what was going on inside my nasal passages and at the back of my throat. The doctor had a look at the back of my throat and popped the endoscope up my nose to see what was happening with my nasal passages and vocal chords and concluded that my nasal passages were swollen which indicated that I either had rhinitis or possibly a touch of sinusitis and as my throat was red, sore and inflamed I had acid reflux (GERD). Upon hearing that the doctor thought I had GERD my heart sank as I know that acid reflux issues can be very difficult to get rid of. I asked the doctor if she really thought I has acid reflux and she told me that all the symptoms indicated that I had it, but to be sure I should visit the gastroenterology department and have an upper GI endoscopy. The doctor gave me a 10 day supply of medication which included antihistamine nasal spray and antibiotics for the suspected Rhinitis and possible Sinusitis and some Proton Pump Inhibitor tablets (PPI’s) to deal with the suspected acid reflux and that was that.
One thing that surprised me was that the doctor did not say anything about coming back to her if things did not improve. I wondered if she was so sure that her diagnosis was correct and that all my issues would be resolved after 10 days of taking the medication she had prescribed to me? I paid the bill for my treatment and medication and left the hospital feeling very uncertain about my diagnosis. To be continued next week.