A cough that will not settle after three weeks
Chest X-ray and, if needed, spirometry to separate asthma, post-infective cough and acid reflux from something structural.
Lungs doctor · Coimbatore
Lungs doctor in Coimbatore: what a lung specialist actually does
If you have been told to 'see a lung doctor', this page explains what that means in practice — which symptoms need a specialist, which test answers which question, and where a pulmonologist stops and a chest surgeon begins. Written by Dr. Arun Gangadhar, Consultant Interventional Pulmonologist and Sleep Physician, Coimbatore.
Medically reviewed by Dr. Arun Gangadhar, MBBS, DNB (Pulmonary Medicine), MNAMS, IDCCM, EDARM — Consultant Interventional Pulmonologist & Sleep Physician, Sri Ramakrishna Hospital and Lung Care — The Pulmonary Clinic, Coimbatore.
Symptom to next step
Which symptom leads to which test
Most people arrive with a symptom rather than a diagnosis. This is the usual route from one to the other.
Breathlessness while walking or climbing stairs
Lung function testing (spirometry with reversibility) plus an assessment of the heart, weight and anaemia, because breathlessness is rarely one problem alone.
Wheeze or repeated chest infections
Inhaler technique review, allergy assessment and spirometry — repeated 'bronchitis' in an adult is often undiagnosed asthma or COPD.
Blood in the sputum
Prompt imaging, usually a CT chest, and often a bronchoscopy to look directly at the airway.
A nodule or shadow reported on a scan
Review of the images against any older scans, a risk assessment, and where sampling is needed, EBUS or a guided biopsy.
Fluid around the lung on an X-ray
Ultrasound-guided aspiration, fluid analysis, and thoracoscopy when the cause stays unclear.
Loud snoring with daytime sleepiness
A sleep study, then CPAP or BiPAP titration if obstructive sleep apnoea is confirmed.
Breathlessness that started after treated tuberculosis
Lung function testing and imaging for post-TB airway damage or bronchiectasis, then a rehabilitation and inhaler plan.
Who does what
Chest physician, interventional pulmonologist, chest surgeon
These titles are often used interchangeably in Coimbatore. They are not the same, and knowing the difference saves a wasted appointment.
Pulmonologist (chest physician)
A physician who trained further in lung and airway disease. Diagnoses and treats asthma, COPD, interstitial lung disease, infections, sleep-disordered breathing and lung cancer, and performs airway procedures such as bronchoscopy. In Tamil, this is the நுரையீரல் நிபுணர்.
Interventional pulmonologist
A pulmonologist with additional training in procedures done through the airway or chest wall — EBUS-guided sampling, cryobiopsy, airway stenting and medical thoracoscopy — so that a diagnosis can often be reached without open surgery.
Thoracic (chest) surgeon
A surgeon who operates on the lung, chest wall and mediastinum. You are referred to one after a diagnosis is established, usually for resection of a tumour or for surgery a scope cannot achieve.
General physician
The right first stop for an ordinary chest infection. A lung specialist adds value when symptoms persist, recur, or when a scan or lung function test shows something that needs explaining.
The tests, explained
What each investigation involves
Nothing here is unpleasant enough to postpone. Knowing what happens usually removes most of the worry about it.
Spirometry and lung function testing
You breathe into a machine through a mouthpiece. It measures how much air you can move and how fast, which is what separates asthma from COPD and grades how severe either is. Takes about fifteen minutes and is painless.
Chest X-ray and CT
An X-ray is the screening test; a CT gives the detail. A lung specialist reads them alongside your symptoms rather than treating the report in isolation.
Allergy assessment
Useful when cough, wheeze or nasal symptoms follow a season, a place or an animal. It changes what you avoid, not only what you take.
Sleep study
An overnight recording of breathing, oxygen and heart rate. It is how snoring is separated from obstructive sleep apnoea, and it sets the pressure if CPAP is needed.
Bronchoscopy
A thin flexible camera passed into the airway under sedation to look, wash and take samples. It answers questions an image alone cannot.
Pleural procedures
Ultrasound-guided drainage of fluid, and thoracoscopy when the fluid keeps coming back or the cause is unclear.
Procedures are described in more detail on the bronchoscopy, EBUS and medical thoracoscopy pages.
FAQ
Common questions about seeing a lung doctor
What is the difference between a lungs doctor and a pulmonologist?
They are the same thing. 'Lung doctor', 'lungs specialist' and 'chest physician' are everyday words for a pulmonologist — a physician who has done specialist training in respiratory medicine. Dr. Arun Gangadhar holds MBBS, DNB (Pulmonary Medicine), MNAMS, IDCCM and EDARM.
When should I see a lung specialist rather than a general physician?
See a lung specialist when a cough lasts more than three weeks, when breathlessness limits what you can do, when chest infections keep returning, when you cough up blood, or when a scan reports a nodule, shadow or fluid. A general physician remains the right first stop for a straightforward short illness.
What tests will a lungs doctor do on the first visit?
Usually a detailed history and examination, a review of any scans and reports you bring, and spirometry if breathlessness or wheeze is the problem. Further tests such as CT, allergy testing, a sleep study or bronchoscopy are arranged only when the first assessment points to them.
Can lung damage be reversed?
Some of it. Airway narrowing in asthma is largely reversible with the right inhaler, and inflammation from infection settles. Scarring — from advanced COPD, fibrosis or old tuberculosis — does not reverse, but breathlessness can still improve substantially with treatment, rehabilitation and, where needed, oxygen.
What should I bring to a lung specialist appointment?
Previous chest X-rays and CT films or discs, any pulmonary function or sleep study reports, discharge summaries, and the actual inhalers and tablets you use — the devices matter as much as the drug names.
Are consultations available in Tamil?
Yes. Consultations are in English, Tamil, Malayalam and Hindi.