Hoarseness

ready2sleep · Post by **ready2sleep** » Fri Aug 31, 2007 2:03 pm

Hi, has anyone else had or have this problem? I am 100% compliant, but lately I am really horse. I have the humidifier up to 2 and that seems to feel good. Any suggestions????

jimbassett · Post by **jimbassett** » Fri Aug 31, 2007 3:23 pm

OH YEAH !!! I can't tolerate cold air in my nose. Don't be afraid to go on up with it. Nothing is going to happen except after awhile the air seems about body temp and becomes quite comfortable. If you don't like that you can always turn it back down untill it is comfortable. Happy breathing! jim

kteague · Post by **kteague** » Fri Aug 31, 2007 4:21 pm

Sometimes hoarseness is cpap related, mine is worse when I turn my humidifier down. I like cool air but warmer air seems to moisturize better, so what's a woman to do? But cpap didn't cause all my hoarseness. The ENT scoped me recently and said there are vocal cord nodules and and signs of the effects of GERD. If your hoarseness continues, you might want to make sure something else isn't going on. Best wishes.
Kathy

scenestealer · Post by **scenestealer** » Sat Sep 01, 2007 1:28 am

I'm definitely having a lot of hoarseness, and I'm on the other end of the spectrum: I can't tolerate warm, muggy air when I'm trying to sleep (comes from growing up in the coldest room in my parent's house, i think). Also having ongoing sinus problems, i think because I'm not getting enough humidity. So I'm going to buy a Passover Humidifier, and see what happens... I'll let you know how that goes.

Snoredog · Post by **Snoredog** » Sat Sep 01, 2007 1:52 am

it can have many causes including stress but one cause can be Post Nasal Drip, having that can leave clear sticky mucus at the base of the tongue, it coats the vocal cords and causes hoarseness and vocal cord dysfunction (VCD). Can even contribute to closure of the UES.

Hoarseness can also be caused by GERD from the other direction, stomach contents gets sucked back up the esophagus after an apnea event during your fight or flight response, since it creates a low pressure or vacuum in the esophagus which can suck stomach contents past the LES and cause the same thing.

Sometimes using a simple saline rhino rinse will flush out the nasal passages and help break down the sticky mucus, if it is from GERD, you need to elevate the head of your bed and address the GERD. You would also need to watch your diet, drink plenty of water, avoid dairy such as whole milk and sometimes orange juice.

You might search for Post Nasal Drip, Vocal Cord Dysfunction or PVCD, in severe cases they may perform a CT scan to examine your sinuses to find the source or cause of the post nasal drip.

JZ · Post by JZ » Sat Sep 01, 2007 10:23 am

scenestealer wrote:I'm definitely having a lot of hoarseness, and I'm on the other end of the spectrum: I can't tolerate warm, muggy air when I'm trying to sleep (comes from growing up in the coldest room in my parent's house, i think). Also having ongoing sinus problems, i think because I'm not getting enough humidity. So I'm going to buy a Passover Humidifier, and see what happens... I'll let you know how that goes.

Scenestealer,

If your equipment information in your profile is corrent, you do not need to buy a "Passover Humidifier." You can use your Respironics integrated humidifier in passover mode. Just put in distilled water and keep the dial at zero.

Janna

ready2sleep · Post by **ready2sleep** » Sat Sep 01, 2007 4:26 pm

Thank you for your information. More information, I do have problems with sinuses often, in that I get a lot of sinus infections. Also, I know I dont have GERD, Thank God!! I hear its rough to have. I love the cool air, and fall asleep before it gets warm, so that doesnt bother me. Does this new information change anything for anybody? Thanks for all your help.

Snoredog · Post by **Snoredog** » Sat Sep 01, 2007 4:50 pm

ready2sleep wrote:Thank you for your information. More information, I do have problems with sinuses often, in that I get a lot of sinus infections. Also, I know I dont have GERD, Thank God!! I hear its rough to have. I love the cool air, and fall asleep before it gets warm, so that doesnt bother me. Does this new information change anything for anybody? Thanks for all your help.

That would confirm the cause of your problem, sinuses. Your sinuses drain to the back of your throat where you swallow the drainage (yes we all eat our own buggers), if that drainage is thick it sticks to everything on the way down, if it coats your vocal cords they stick together and act like an apnea or if it becomes sticky you will talk funny (hoarseness you are reporting).

SO you need to address your sinus problems and the hoarseness should go away. You can help by drinking more water, when you are dehydrated the body starts robbing water where it least needed, sinuses, joints, muscles etc. If your urine is clear then you are fine with hydration, then using a saline rhino rinse may help think out that sinus drainage and eliminate the hoarseness. Use of a pinch of baking soda will help with that dried out mucus and flush it away.

If you perform the saline rhino rinse to your nasal passages regularly and the problem persists then you may need to see a ENT for a CT scan of your sinus cavity to determine the cause. My guess is you probably don't have much of any smell left either, that is because the tiny cilli hairs found deep within in the sinuses has become damaged and cannot flush out your sinuses regularly. The debri you breathe in doesn't get flushed out properly so it stays in a sinus pocket resulting in repeat infections. If by external means they cannot clean out those pockets they can go in with surgery and clean them out.

There are different methods for performing the rhino rinse, some use a neti-pot, others a ear aspirator, others a Dr. Grossen's nasal irrigator (water pik with a special tip and pulsing mode).

I would avoid any and all nasal sprays and steroids of any kind. Only thing that should go into your nose is your finger and saline fluid with about the same pH as your eye tears. Baking soda has been shown to break up that dried mucus but that is optional.

Pam · Post by **Pam** » Sat Sep 01, 2007 5:11 pm

Hi, something that will help with your sinus problems is a "neti pot". It is very inexpensive and can be purchased at any pharmacy.

Mine looks like a small gravy boat.

It is really great, I use mine all the time. Helps a lot.

When I get lazy and don't use it for a few days I suffer when my allergies kick in and my sinuses go nuts.

Good luck.
Pam

socknitster · Post by **socknitster** » Sat Sep 01, 2007 5:29 pm

ready2sleep wrote:Thank you for your information. More information, I do have problems with sinuses often, in that I get a lot of sinus infections. Also, I know I dont have GERD, Thank God!! I hear its rough to have. I love the cool air, and fall asleep before it gets warm, so that doesnt bother me. Does this new information change anything for anybody? Thanks for all your help.

I wouldn't be too quick to eliminate GERD. I have a condition called silent GERD and I had a lovely melifluous voice that got hoarse and raspy. My only symptom besides the raspy, hoarseness and an occasional lingering cough was a sensation of a glob of snot at the base of my throat that I was always clearing my throat against and/or trying to swallow down. After 6 weeks of prilosec otc and 2 weeks of prevacid a scope in my throat revealed I STILL had signs of GERD damage--and I never had heartburn or any other "regular" symtom.

My ent says it is safer to keep me on prilosec indefinitely than continue to do damage to my esophogus. Also, you should know it is pretty well documented that apnea causes gerd--the gasp for breath siphons acid up your throat and into your whole airway--it can go into lungs, sinuses etc and cause damage there. I heard of a lady with terrrible sinus trouble caused by GERD. Once that was under control, so was her sinus. It can take a while to heal these delicate tissues.

If other things don't clear up the hoarseness, I would ask your doc about this. GERD is pretty serious. I was shocked about the damage still evident after 2 months of treatment and never having had heartburn to begin with. I've also had sinus trouble and ear infections and sore throats a lot during my adult life which has always seemed odd. Now I think I know why.

jen

Perchancetodream · Post by **Perchancetodream** » Sat Sep 01, 2007 6:04 pm

It seems easy to assume that hoarseness is due to CPAP therapy, but there are a number of causes, some have been mentioned, GERD (which can be silent except for hoarseness or dry cough) and sinus conditions.

But it can also be a sign of something more serious, so if it persists, you should probably see a doctor.

Susan

kantite · Post by **kantite** » Tue Sep 04, 2007 10:38 pm

drink warm drinks not cold. Try tea with honey, or water with lemon, these work pretty well! Feel better.

socknitster · Post by **socknitster** » Wed Sep 05, 2007 9:13 am

kantite wrote:drink warm drinks not cold. Try tea with honey, or water with lemon, these work pretty well! Feel better.

Honey is soothing to the throat and also antimicrobial.

jen