Coughing up blood in the morning can be quite scary, especially if you just notice it for the first time. Coughing up blood is called hemoptysis and refers to a situation when you cough and expel blood from your lungs, throat or any other part of your respiratory tract. The amount of blood you cough up and how long you've been doing it determine the severity of the situation. Whatever the case is, make sure you don't take things lightly when you notice any blood in your saliva.
10 Possible Reasons of Coughing Up Blood in the Morning
1. Injury or Trauma
You may spit up blood after an injury or trauma to the gums, teeth or any tissues in your respiratory tract. You may damage a gum tissue through gnawing or grinding during sleep,which may cause a little bleeding. It is easy to identify the visible source of the blood in this case. Sometimes, sinus infections will accompany drainage that lead to dryness and often make sensitive tissues in your throat to bleed. You will also end up noticing blood in phlegm in this case.
2. Medications
You may see sputum tinged with blood due to the use of certain drugs. Using illicit drugs can damage the internal tissue of your respiratory system. This is more common with drugs that you snort, smoke or inhale. The bleeding often happens hours after use. You may experience the same situation when using prescription medications, such as the blood thinners or anticoagulant medications.
3. Smoking
One of many reasons to see blood tinged mucus is smoking. Excessive smoking can damage the tissues of your respiratory system. This often makes you see blood in mucus and phlegm. Smoking is also the single most common cause of lung cancer.
4. Infection
Infections caused by viruses such as influenza or bacteria such as Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus may well be the reason why you're coughing up blood in the morning. This may also happen due to a fungal infection caused by fungi such as Aspergillus species. HIV infection may also lead to some conditions that have blood in mucus.
5. Bronchiectasis
Recurrent inflammation of the lungs may lead to bronchiectasis in which your airways become enlarged and start producing excess mucus. The most common symptoms include bad breath, bluish tinge to the skin, wheezing, paleness, shortness of breath and fatigue, except for coughing up blood in the morning.
6. Bronchitis and Pneumonia
A viral infection may lead to the inflammation of the bronchi or the air passage. The condition is called bronchitis and some of its common symptoms include shortness of breath that worsens with activity, low-grade fever, wheezing, chest pain and fatigue. Pneumonia, a common bacterial lung infection caused by Streptococcus pneumonia, may also produce similar symptoms to that of bronchitis but with greater severity. Shortness of breath will be severe and you will have high-grade fever with chills. Cough that produces bloody mucus is common in both conditions.
7. Pulmonary Embolism
Sometimes, coughing up blood in the morning indicates a serious underlying health condition, such as pulmonary embolism. It is a medical emergency and may even lead to sudden death. It usually means a traveling blood clot has reached the arteries of your lungs and blocked the blood flow to your lungs. If that's the case, you will experience some other symptoms as well, such as intense pain in the chest and shortness of breath. You are more likely to notice foamy pink blood mucus when you cough heavily.
8. Tuberculosis
Pulmonary tuberculosis is among the leading causes of hemoptysis in different parts of the world. However, even if you're coughing up blood in the morning, it doesn't always mean you have lung tuberculosis. Tobacco abuse is one of the main causes of pulmonary tuberculosis that produces certain other symptoms, such as night sweats, weight loss, fever, chest pain, breathing difficulty and fatigue. So try to avoid smoking tobacco in the very beginning.
9. Lung Cancer
Lung cancer may well be the reason why you're noticing blood tinged mucus in the morning. Originated in the lining of your main airways, it causes hemoptysis in more than 20% of cases. You notice bleeding because of small blood vessels breaking up due to tumor. Tumor cell death may also be the reason behind bleeding. Other symptoms of lung cancer include wheezing, coughing up blood, shortness of breath, poor appetite, unexplained weight loss, fatigue, clubbing of fingers and severe chest pain.
10. Other Rare Causes
In some cases, your blood-tinged mucus indicates some other rare causes. The list includes pulmonary venous hypertension, pulmonary veno-occlusive disease, pulmonary edema, systemic lupus erythematosus, and severe acute mountain sickness.
When Should You Visit a Doctor for Coughing Up Blood in the Morning?
It is important to go and talk to your doctor if you continue to notice blood in your mucus every morning for a few days. You should seek immediate medical attention if you're coughing up blood in the morning and noticing other symptoms such as fever, chest pain, light-headedness, shortness of breath, and blood in urine or stools. Noticing too much blood is also an indicator that you must see your doctor immediately.
Your doctor will ask for specific tests such as CT scan, chest X-ray, bronchoscopy, etc. to identify the underlying cause in your case. He or she will check you for other symptoms as well to make an exact diagnosis for proper treatment.