Getting Diagnosed With Bronchiectasis

I was just told I have a condition called bronchiectasis. According to The American Lung Association, bronchiectasis is a chronic lung condition where the walls of your airways (bronchi) widen and are thickened from inflammation and infection. Early diagnosis and treatment of bronchiectasis and any underlying condition are important for preventing further damage to your lungs.¹

Common symptoms of bronchiectasis

Symptoms of bronchiectasis can take months or years to develop and gradually worsen. The two primary symptoms are a daily cough and daily mucus production (sputum).¹

Other symptoms typically include:

• Coughing up yellow or green mucus daily
• Shortness of breath
• Fatigue, feeling run-down or tired
• Fevers and/or chills
>Wheezing or whistling sound while you breathe
• Coughing up blood or mucus mixed with blood, a condition called hemoptysis
• Chest pain
• Clubbing, or the thickening of the skin under fingernails and toenails

My long-awaited bronchiectasis diagnosis

I have thought for many years that I have had bronchiectasis. I had many signs. I had all of the above symptoms except for clubbing.

When I asked my pulmonologist about it in the past, he told me that if I had it, it would show up in my CT scans. I had had many CT scans in the past, so I just put the thought in the back of my mind but still thought that I had it.

Then, this summer, when I had to have a CT scan of my heart, they discovered that I indeed did have bronchiectasis. In the meantime, I had been trying to get a SmartVest, with a prescription from my doctor, so that it would help me get all of the excess mucus that I had been dealing with.

Ironically, the day I got my results about the bronchiectasis back from the CT results, I was denied a vest by the insurance company. With my new diagnosis, though, I was approved right away, which got the ball rolling.

Starting chest therapy

A SmartVest is a vest that is worn to do high-frequency chest wall therapy. It delivers rapidly beating pulses of air that gently squeeze and release the upper body, causing mucus to loosen, thin, and propel toward major airways, where it's easier to cough out.

To prepare for my new vest, I had to measure my chest size in width and then the length of my torso. After the sizing was done, they got it shipped off, and then I had to wait for vest training.

While I was waiting for the training, they told me to open the vest and the machine. When it arrived, I read the directions that came with it and to get myself familiar with everything. Usually, the trainer comes to your home for your first fitting and training, but they don't have anyone available in my area.

I had to receive my training with a respiratory therapist over Zoom. Everything went well with that training, and I did my first treatment that night, which was my nebulizer treatment. My doctor prescribed me to do two treatments a day.

A helpful addition to my routine

I have been doing the treatments for a week now, and they seem to be working well. I can get more mucus up and am not choking on it like I have in the past.

It's another step added to my morning and bedtime routine. I am happy it helps me get that gunk up and, hopefully, keep that infection out of my lungs.

Do you have bronchiectasis, or are you using a vest for treatment? Please share with us in the comments below.