My Father is nearly 60 years old. He suffers from acute discomfort in his throat whenever he eats. This is the case for all sorts of food, which ranges from hard, soft, spicy, non-spicy…etc. Even drinking water can cause him to cough.
He had consulted the doctor and some tests for tuberculosis had been done. The various results do not indicate any findings. Please kindly advise.
Dr Aw Chong Yin, Specialist in Ear, Nose & Throat Surgery, Raffles Hospital
From your history there are a few possibilities. However it would be difficult to come to any firm conclusions without examining your father.
His cough may be due to post-nasal drip from infected nasal passages/sinuses. Another possibilty is due gastro-oesophageal reflux whereby gastric juice coming up into the throat due to a malfunctioning gastric valve. Of course a lung condition can also give you similar symptoms.
The approach is to exclude the above conditions one by one by clinical examination, radiological and endoscopic examinations.
My advice to you is to seek an opinion from a doctor who can assess his upper nasal airways as well as his throat and larynx. Investigations that follow depend on the clinical findings. It would be premature to commend further pending clinical findings.