Dryness in chest cavity, nose, esophageous and breast tissue

[chucksusanb]

Is dryness in the chest cavity a symptom of sjogrens?  I will get this in my chest (with breathing), nose, esophegous but even my breast tissues feel that dryness or burning (or dryness).  I wake up at night with the dryness in my throat and it hurts with breathing.  My throat is actually red when I view it. I do have post nasal drip and am just finishing with my antibiotic.  I was on steroids for 6 days and that seemed to make my symptoms worse and dried me out BIG TIME.  I did take prilosec for about 4 months but had a bad reaction to it so I had to stop.  Is this a possible symptom of sjogrens?  Just recently my eyes have started feeling gritty, but this is NOT constant.  I also get recurrent sinusitis.

I have a myriad of other symptoms too.

My only positive blood tests are:
+ANA
+ACA
C Reactive Protein 20.1

[Crymeariver]

Well, I certainly get dry mouth, nose, and throat during the night.  Sometimes it is dry really far down.  It is usually much better with a humidifier, saline nasal spray, and a moisturizing mouth spray like Biotene right before bed.  Even if it isn't Sjogren's that should help with symptoms from mouth breathing during the night due to sinus problems.  I also have a severely deviated septum so mouth breathing aggravates my Sjogrens too.  

[gurs]

since you were on antibiotics and steriods, possible you could have some irritation from them, or you have developed some yeast, which really dries me out.
When my stomach gets super upset, my chest/throat/esophagues. Are you taking any acid reducer like prevacid or prilosec etc? I bet thats it..acid can really
cause all this. I have good luck with Prevacid over the counter.

gursie

[LizPetillo]

Is dryness in the chest cavity a symptom of sjogrens? 

It is for me.   Everything from my nose into my lungs feels dry.  Hurts a bunch sometimes too.

[Aquarius]

I am so very dry in my nose with no post nasal drip.  Mucous in normal amounts is quite beneficial and provides lubrication.  It has important anti inflammatory effects for the digestive tract. 

My esophagus is so dry with no mucous coating that I develop hiccups when I start to eat.  The hiccups started after I went dry in the summer of 2009. 

It would be wonderful to regain the ability to produce mucous and enjoy its benefits.  Benefits that people don't think about when they are the normals. 

[gurs]

Yeah, I wish I had some mucous too!!!! anything to help with this extreme dryness. Alot of medications just dry you out even more as well.
and drinking more water doesnt cut it like everything thinks. I get excited if my nose runs a bit with anything..my family thinks im nuts.

Gursie

[mink]

I believe it is, at least for me....just recently i was hospitalized for a bad flare up (inflamed and swollen legs , could n't walk) and coughing up some blood. Of course they quarantined me to make sure it wasn't tuberculosis. They even did a bronchoscopy and found that my left lung had some bleeding and clots in the lower lobe but they don't know what it is! I believe it has alot to do with the dryness ..after all doesn't our lips crack and bleed when they're dry  ..still now they want to do open lung  .I am so dry!



LOl gurs

[coopwall]

Chucksusanb,
Maybe I missed it, but are you on evoxac or salagen to help you produce saliva?  A must for SJS'ers.  I take Guafenisen (Mucinex-blue tabs) to thin out what mucus I have.  Look for any and all sources of moisture, esp. at night so you can sleep.  I use, Nasalcrom spray (OTC) daily, Ayr gel in nose at night,
Oral balance gel at night, Walgreens eye ointment at bed (drops in the day), humidifiers in bedroom,
There is even a glycerin spray at Walgreens to help pills go down. 
Biotene makes great toothpaste and other products for mouth.

Just getting to a reasonable comfort level can make a huge difference in how we feel!!

Good luck to you!  Keep posting. 

coopwall

[Sha]

Count me in on the dryness....my rheumy said it can dry out  anything that is supposed to be moist...skin, hair, lungs, throat, mouth, eyes, private areas, ears, nose, joints, intestines, etc....

Said a lot  can be  caused from it, but not back pain (that he has said several times)!

Sha 

[deeindiana]

I'm sorry that you are going thru this. Have you spoken to your doctor about it?

When I'm having a flare, I have a similar problem with extreme dryness in my nose, sinus, throat, mouth, esophegous.  The back of my throat will look very visceral and red. Yet while everything feels so dry there seems to be a constant thick post nasal drip going on too. How can you be dry AND drip? It's a painful (and sometimes scary) mystery to me.

Mucinex helps to thin the drainage for me. I try to stay hydrated, humidifier, and use the Biotene products. My old family doctor was willing to write me an RX for antibiotics "just in case anything else is going on" but my new doc won't do that.

And this may sound dumb...  But I get big relief by eating ice cream just before bedtime. Yes, I know that dairy and sugar aren't good for people with SjS. I've tried substituting cold drinks, popcycles, etc. but, for some reason, the cold creaminess soothes the pain in my mouth and throat.  Maybe it's all in my head...but it helps me a lot.

I hope you feel better soon. It can be frightening. We all understand your fear and pain.
Deb