What Kind Of Specialist Should I Consult For Cold And Difficulty In Breathing With Severe Cough?

Posted on Mon, 16 Dec 2013

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Mon, 16 Dec 2013 Answered on

Mon, 6 Jan 2014 Last reviewed on

Question : Hi There! My Dad is having lot of coughing and cold as well. The coughing has become so serious that anytime he coughs, he get suffocation and difficulty breathing. He went to local doctor also for medicine for cold but his cold is not coming out only and it his suffocating him too much. What do you advise and which specialist would be right for his condition to cure him quickly

Answered by Dr. Dr. Prasad J (23 hours later)

Brief Answer: Need more details... Detailed Answer: Hi, I understand you are concerned about your father's condition. To help me understand his condition better, I would need more details about him. Therefore please answer the following questions. 1. How long has been having these symptoms? 2. Did the symptoms start abruptly or was it gradual in onset? 3. Is his symptoms progressing or declining? 4. Does he produce sputum (mucous) with the cough? If yes, can you quantify the amount of sputum, its consistency, color, smell and if there are any blood stains? 5. Does he cough through out the day or is it more at a particular time of the day? 6. If his symptoms have been long standing one, do you find there is pattern change in relation to the weather? 7. Is he running fever along with it? 8. How has is appetite been? Is he eating well? Is he losing weight? 9. Does he smoke? If yes, how many and since when? 10. Can you confirm if he has any past medical illness including asthma (childhood) or if he is on any regular medications? 11. If there are any other unusual symptoms please mention. I look forward your answers to all these questions. Best regards

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar