(Longer post)
A few posts ago, Dr. Dave Mannino mentioned that sometimes they see chronic infection like Mycoplasma Pneumoniae being the root cause of what is manifesting like mild (usually non-smoking) copd and or asthma.
This shocked me because not many doctors recognize or believe that some asthma/copd is a chronic infection.
Back my respiratory troubles began (in my non-smoking never been around smoke, 32 year old, healthy lungs, i sought out help from a Dr in Ohio that treated “asthma” like an infection using long course (1+years) of macrolide or tetracycline antibiotics. In fact, i flew to Ohio with my then 3 month old son to get assessed by this doctor and hopefully get handed antibiotics. When i was there, i noticed some red flags because he didnt want to look at my ct scan and instead just said “this is the infection”. He did do a serological blood test and there it showed a positive IGM & IGG for Mycoplasma Pneumoniae. He wrote me a script for azithromycin only because I was breastfeeding at the time and doxycycline was potent for my baby.
Once on Azithromycin, thanks to its immunomodulatory effects, I felt a little better. Still needed inhalers but something was “calmer” with my breathing. I felt less sick and i had less mucus production too. After three months, I still had my breathing issues but i still wasnt ready to take doxy because i didnt want to miss out on nursing my Son for a therapy that wasnt for certain going to work. It was ok to take doxycycline for 8 weeks or under while breastfeeding. So, i took doct for only 8 weeks with clarithromycin. I didnt notice any good changes-actually worse breathing so i just got back on azithromycin for an entire year because that helped the inflammation a bit. Within this year, i found out i actually have hypogammaglobulinemia (low Immunoglobulin G’s). So i got busy with believing that possibly my lack of immune “soldiers” made me more susceptible to my respiratory issues. I learned that many people with low Immunoglobulin G’s are on supplemental human immunoglobulin therapy (intravenous infusions) and sometimes their respiratory issues would get better or completely resolve.
This insight made me think that maybe if i could get my insurance to approve me for supplemental human immunoglobulins, i could do the antibiotic therapy too and it would defeat the mycoplasma pneumoniae! At least, that’s my hope. But, insurance wont approve me bec while i do have low Immunoglobulins, my immune system held on to enough antibodies of the pneumococcal vaccine challenge.
So, im back at square one. Breztri isn’t helping anymore. Im not sure if that’s my 19 week pregnancy causing my lungs to just reject Breztri or what but Breztri barely makes a difference. I feel like lately ive been breathing with my albuterol. Im scared that i wont be able to carry my baby to terms like this.
So, has anyone with mild copd, who doesnt have allergic asthma or allergies, feel like their issues could be caused by a chronic infection?
Thanks a LOT for reading. I wont stop fighting- my circumstances are just too weird. However, i realize i have mild copd right now and i am accepting that to a degree.
I appreciate all of you.