my grandfather smokes heavily and is 67 years old and i just watched him cough in his sleep. it began as a continuous cough, cough cough however it then turned to one long cough and his eyes rolled to the back of his head. after 5 seconds of this he woke himself up with his coughing and looked dazed and his body was shaking and his arms were twitching. could you give me any explanation as to why this has happened and what can be done. He is very stubborn and refuses to stop
Hello dear, thanks for your question on Chat Doctor. I can understand your grandfathers situation and problem. He is having coughing, only and only due to smoking.  So ask him to quit smoking as soon as possible. Following are the possible common causes for chronic, continuous coughing in heavy smokers.1. COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease)2. Chronic infection like tuberculosis3. Lung cancer4. Pulmonary fibrosis. So better to consult pulmonologist and get done1. Chest x ray2. PUT (pulmonary function test)3. CT thorax if required. Chest x-ray is needed to rule out lung infection. PFT is needed to rule out bronchitis. CT thorax is needed to rule out lung cancer and fibrosis. So consult pulmonologist and first diagnose himself and then start appropriate treatment. Smoking cessation should be the first step in his case.