My mother is 86 and for 6 years has had difficultity with chronic cough.  Had a swallow study, her eppiglotis is not functioning properly. She gets headaches and other pains from coughing so much, and I can not express how frustrating her coughing is for the rest of the family.  Codine and other supressants do not work.  Any suggestions? Also she is on hospise care.... what are the long-term consequences of this type of problem?
Thanks for your question on Chat Doctor. I can understand your concern. By your history and description, your mother is mostly having aspiration and related lung disease. Non-functioning of epiglottis is common cause of aspiration. The common complication is aspiration pneumonia. So better to get done chest x-ray to rule out pneumonia. For prevention, nasogastric tube insertion is an easy option. It prevents aspiration and hence pneumonia. So better to consult doctor and discuss all these. Also ask about nasogastric tube. Hope I have solved your query. Wishing good health to your mother. Thanks.