Guaifenesin for colds

teriwtt
Wed, 21 May 2008 16:48:12 +0000

Well, I’ve learned some lessons that hopefully will be helpful in the future. I should have stated in my first post (I have shared this in other threads) that I have a repaired cleft palate. So my sinus/ear issues tend to require a bit more attention than most people. While I usually have no problems when I get a cold, the fact that I had to fly yesterday made the situation worse. So I was very gently reminded by my ENT that I should have called him up when I first got sick and told him of impending plans to fly. He would have taken a more aggressive approach with symptom management to avoid the eardrum rupture. That being said, I also have bronchitis. So he switched my antibiotic to something else and put me on a medrol dosepak. I also had a hearing test done in his office, which could have had bad results, but could have been better. So I follow up with him in two weeks (yes, I scheduled the appt. before I left his office)… about a week before I have to fly again!

However, he did offer another suggestion that I was not aware of. He says that if people have lots of sinus pressure/bad cold, etc., and they come see him before flying, he can actually place a very, very small hole in the eardrum with a needle, which will help minimize the chances that the eardrum will rupture. He promised me it’s basically a painless procedure, so at least I feel like I have something else to fall back on in the future if flying is unavoidable. I then told him I would have felt silly calling him up to tell him I had a cold, but he said with my medical history, it would be best to nip it all in the bud before, rather than after. Lesson learned.