How to get rid of phlegm?

Doctor's Answers 1

Thank you for your question. Phlegm or mucous is the fluid substance produced by the breathing passage (respiratory tract). It can be clear and stringy or thick and coloured. Phlegm can originate from your nose, sinuses, throat, lungs and gut. Hence, without a complete clinical history it is hard to determine the cause of your phlegm.

Common causes of excessive phlegm include:

1. Nose & Sinuses (Allergic Rhinitis, sinusitis, common cold/flu etc)

2. Lungs (Pneumonia, Bronchitis, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease etc)

3. Gut (E.g. Gastroesophageal reflux disease)

You should visit a General Practitioner to help determine the cause of your phlegm. Treating the underlying cause will help reduce or get rid of the phlegm.

Hope this helps and all the best!

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If you have a sinus infection and bronchitis that has not gone away with antibiotics, you can see an ENT Specialist for an assessment and likely a nasoendoscopy (scope through the nose done in the clinic under local anaesthesia). If there is still infected mucous (mucopus) seen in your nose, a sample of the mucopus has to be taken and sent to the lab for analysis (bacterial culture). This is to determine the type of bacteria responsible for your sinus infection and the antibiotics that will be effective against that bacteria.

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