About
It is the discharge of blood coming through the mouth coming from the bronchi, larynx, trachea, or lungs.It can be a sign of a serious medical condition. Infections, cancer, and problems in blood vessels in your lungs can cause it. You need to see the doctor immediately if you are coughing out blood unless you have bronchitis.
Symptoms
Coughing up blood can also be a sign of a serious medical condition. Call for medical help if you have any of these symptoms:
- Blood in mucus that lasts longer than a week, is severe or getting worse, or comes and goes over time
- Chest pain
- Weight loss
- Soaking sweats at night
- Fever higher than 101 degrees
- Shortness of breath with your usual activity level
Causes
There can be many reasons that can make you cough up blood. Common causes include:
- Bronchitis, either short-term (acute) or long-term (chronic)
- Lung cancer
- Damaged airways (bronchiectasis), especially because of cystic fibrosis
- Pneumonia
- Tuberculosis
- Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
Some of the other serious causes may include:
- Congestive heart failure
- Foreign objects in your airways
- Non-cancerous lung tumors
- Parasitic infection
- Pulmonary arteriovenous malformations (AVMs)
- Pulmonary embolism
- An injury like a gunshot wound or car accident
- Endometriosis
- Hughes-Stovin syndrome
- Hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia
- Sarcoidosis
Diagnosis
If you’re coughing up blood, your doctor may suggest one or more of these tests:
- Medical history and physical exam
- Chest X-ray
- CT scan
- Bronchoscopy
- Complete blood count (CBC)
- Urinalysis
- Blood chemistry profile
- Coagulation tests
- Arterial blood gas
- Pulse oximetry
Treatments
Treatment for hemoptysis depends on how much blood you’re coughing up and what’s the reason behind it.
- Iced saline
- Medications to narrow blood vessels (vasoconstrictors) like epinephrine or vasopressin
- Medicines to help blood clot (coagulants) like tranexamic acid
- Tiny balloons or cuffs to put pressure on the area (bronchial blockade or balloon tamponade)
- Laser therapy
- Argon plasma coagulation (APC)
- Cryotherapy
- Embolization
These are the most common treatments given to patients with hemoptysis. it is advised to seek medical help in mild to severe cases.
