When I wake up in the morning, I spit brown

What we call phlegm in daily life is a kind of secretion in our body. Many times when we cough, there will be some phlegm. Under normal circumstances, healthy people will not have phlegm. When respiratory diseases occur, patients will have phlegm. Many patients will cough and have phlegm after getting up in the morning. If the phlegm is brown, you need to pay attention.

If you get up in the morning and spit out brown phlegm, it is recommended that you first do a color Doppler ultrasound of your liver, gallbladder, and abdomen and a liver function test.

Case 1

Cough, sputum, wheezing and inflammation are common symptoms of lower respiratory tract infection. Lower respiratory tract infections can be acute or chronic. The main acute infection is acute tracheobronchitis, which is the most common disease of the respiratory system. It is mostly caused by infection, physical and chemical stimulation or allergy. It is an acute inflammation of the tracheal and bronchial mucosa and is common in cold seasons.

Case 2

When inflammation occurs in the respiratory tract, the composition of the respiratory fluid changes and sputum is formed. Sputum contains mucus, foreign matter, pathogenic microorganisms, various inflammatory cells, and necrotic and detached mucosal epithelial cells. The fluid in sputum is mainly secreted by mucus-secreting glands and goblet cells of the bronchial mucosal epithelium. The secretion of the gland is controlled by the vagus nerve. Stimulating the vagus nerve can increase the secretion of the gland. In addition to being controlled by the vagus nerve, goblet cells also increase their secretion after being directly stimulated by inhaled dry air, irritating gases, etc.

Case 3

In diseases such as chronic tracheitis, the glands in the trachea and bronchi hypertrophy, the goblet cells increase, the amount of secretions increases significantly, and their viscosity also greatly increases. The ciliary movement of the tracheal mucosa weakens, resulting in obstruction of the sputum clearance function and difficulty in expelling mucus.

Other colors of sputum

1. If the sputum is yellow, it indicates a purulent infection. If it is green, it indicates a Pseudomonas aeruginosa infection. Such as: tracheitis, chronic bronchitis, tuberculosis, lung abscess

2. Red or brown sputum indicates blood in the sputum, which is seen in lung cancer, tuberculosis, bronchitis. Pink sputum indicates acute pulmonary edema.

3. When the sputum is brown in color, it is seen in amoebic lung abscess

4. When the sputum is rotten peach-shaped, it is due to the decomposition of necrotic lung tissue, which is seen in paragonimiasis. Paragonimiasis can be found under a microscope.

5. When the sputum is rusty, it is seen in lobar pneumonia

6. When the sputum smells foul and is black in color, it is seen in lung abscess, bronchiectasis and advanced lung malignant tumors. It is recommended to go to the hospital to check whether the respiratory tract and lungs are infected.