i have bad astmah and have had a really bad chest for the last nearly 4 weeks. i have allways had chest infections but not this long and gone though 2 lots of inhalers and taking them proply. but all the coughing is wearing me out. and my bf mam told me to go and get one as she is a nurse and said i sound really bad. my question is can the doctors tell me no if i ask for one. even if he says there is nothimg wrong cos thats what they normaly say thanks.
2007-10-31 06:00:48 · 14 answers · asked by shell 5 in Health ➔ Diseases & Conditions ➔ Respiratory Diseases
sorry for any spelling mistakes
2007-10-31 06:01:10 · update #1
am 21 and have had it since i was born
2007-10-31 06:08:44 · update #2
i have never had an xray before
2007-10-31 06:10:26 · update #3
You are an asthmatic, you are 21 years old and you have never had an x-ray. Time to change doctors. Really.
It sounds to me that you probably need to go to the Emergency Room. If you have gone through 2 inhalers in such a short period of time and you say that they haven't helped you are officially in "respiratory distress".
Yes, the doctor can tell you no.
One of the biggest myths surrounding asthma is that it is not a serious illness to have. People's airways may be more reactive than other people's airways, but whenever we are speaking of an illness that has to do with breathing, it is a serious illness. The American Lung Association says, "When you cannot breathe, nothing else matters...". Anyone who has ever had to fight for their next breath knows that this is very true. Asthma, no matter how "mild", should be taken seriously.
Another myth of Asthma is that any doctor is qualified to manage one's asthma. This is an illness that requires a specialist. A Pulmonolgist is a lung specialist. They should be aware of the treatments that are new and are working better and longer than the old treatments. Your family doctor is wonderful, but when you have Asthma, you should not trust your breathing to just any doctor.
The following is a true story:
There he was, swimming in Lake Michigan in Michigan City, IN. He began to feel that all too familiar tightness with his breathing. He got himself to the nearest sandbar to try and get his breathing under control. Like any good asthmatic, he carried his inhaler with him. He pulled it out of his trunks and took a couple of puffs. He had grabbed the wrong inhaler. He grabbed the long lasting one, not the rescue inhaler. When he arrived in our ER, he was in full respiratory arrest. That teenager died from an asthma attack. The Pulmonologist that was in the ER was so dismayed he asked why this boy had not been seeing a Pulmonologist. He also stated that no one should ever die from Asthma
One more myth and then I will close: It is ok to smoke around people with Asthma, with reactive lung disease as long as I smoke outside. This is as foolish as people who say I didn't know that my perfume was affecting her breathing, I put it on at home. It affects people the same way. The odor of the smoke, the retention of the nicotine, it will all affect your asthmatic.
Please do not take asthma lightly. Please do not think that asthma myths make asthma not important. Asthma can be deadly although it should never be deadly. Get help from the lung specialist, the Pulmologist.
I wish you good health and easy breathing.
2007-10-31 06:17:08 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 5⤊ 0⤋
First I totally agree with Dr Frank's answer.
yes if there is no reason to get a chest x-ray done then they wont do it. Its called a misallocation of resources. Your insurance also wont pay for it if it is not medically necessary. A chest x-ray requires a doctors order. A chest xray is a lab result intended for the doctor to make a diagnosis, unless you know how to read a chest xray they would be of very little value. Providing a sputum sample would be of a better benefit as they can send it to a microbiology lab to see what is causing your infection....a cough does not always mean infection...you may need to see an asthma educator so you can get ahead of your asthma and keep it under good maintenance. I would ask for a referral to a pulmonologist or asthma clinic if there is one in your area.
2007-10-31 18:48:13 · answer #2 · answered by bakerct78 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
He certainly can refuse. It is quite important that asthmatics don't keep getting exposed to radiation every time they get chesty.
Asthmatics get no more chest infections than non asthmatics and almost never get any benefit at all from antibiotics, as this is of course the wrong treatment for the wrong condition. Poorly managed asthmatics whose doctors need retrained, tend to get chesty about every 7 weeks, which is the frequency that we ALL get viral infections.
If this is you, it means that your maintenance therapy, these days it usually consists of a combined steroid/long acting beta 2 against inhaler, Seretide or Symbicort, is either missing or is being given in too low a dose. If you are on a high dose of one or other of these Singulair is usually added.
Asthma is a condition which a good GP should be able to control, However If you are getting nowhere with your control ask your GP to refer you to a chest physician.
2007-10-31 17:19:19 · answer #3 · answered by Dr Frank 7 · 3⤊ 0⤋
Yes, he can tell you no especially if you have had several xrays done in the past. FYI: Overexposure of radiation can be dangerous. Although, it is also the doctors job to make sure your are healthy so it is very unlikely that he will say no. Unfortunately you do need a Drs orders to go to a free standing clinic or hospital to get an xray. My advice to you is if you Doc for some reason says no, then go to a mino emergency care clinic. They don't know your history, therefore they will do several diagnostic tests in order to find the problem. Hope this helps.
2007-10-31 13:08:22 · answer #4 · answered by Akmayeli 2 · 2⤊ 0⤋
If you're having persisting problems, then your GP is likely to do what's necessary to help you. If that includes a chest x-ray, you will be sent for one. You don't say what age you are, but it might be no harm to get a referral to a specialist also, or at least to see your local asthma nurse.
The best thing you can do yourself is to monitor your Peak Flow Rate morning and night, before and after inhalers,over a week or two, to see if the inhalers are working well for you.
Good luck.
2007-10-31 13:07:03 · answer #5 · answered by RM 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Explain this to your doctor and he will listen to your chest. An x ray may be needed but will only add information not cure the cough.
You need antibiotics and possibly steroids in one form or another rather than an x ray. Do not try and second guess your doctor go and talk to him.
2007-10-31 15:47:23 · answer #6 · answered by Jean O 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I have just bruised my sternum (breast bone) and hurt my ribs. I am asthmatic too. But they would not xray me they said the radiation does more harm than good. But then I dont have same problem as you - i would go back to your GP and insist and see what he says. Hope your better soon.
2007-10-31 13:10:50 · answer #7 · answered by kitten 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Hi
Only your Doctor can order a chest X-Ray.
X-Rays add to your yearly ionizing radiation burden so you dont have X-Rays for the sake of it.
2007-10-31 13:07:18 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
Your doctor will only put you forward for an X-ray if he/she thinks it necessary. There are certain ailments which neither show on an x-ray or can be better diagnosed by the use of one ! ! !
2007-10-31 13:09:21 · answer #9 · answered by minefelloff 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Go straight to A&E.
I went in for a headache a couple weeks ago, and they gave me blood / glucose / urine tests, ECG, CT scan and lumber puncture.
A&E is more thorough than your doctor, but you have to wait longer
2007-10-31 13:50:23 · answer #10 · answered by The Ideal Muggle 3 · 1⤊ 1⤋