Chest infection Phlegm (or sputum) is a sticky substance produced by the lungs to help keep them hydrated and help protect you from infection. It provides this protection by trapping any particles you may breathe in through your airways – including viruses and bacteria - and naturally drains down into the back of your throat, where it is usually swallowed or maybe coughed up. However when we develop a chest infection, phlegm thickens, and it may be hard to shift and cough up. Breathing exercises - as mentioned above, can help in preventing a chest infection. Further techniques, such as ‘the Huff’ and ‘Cough’ can also be practised - to help you clear phlegm. These can be found on page 30 of our Lung Booklet - see link at the bottom of this page. For those undergoing surgery, general anaesthetics affect the normal way that phlegm is moved out of the lungs. Pain from the operation can mean that taking a deep breath or coughing is difficult. As a result of these two things, phlegm can build up in the lungs, increasing the risk of an infection developing.
Advice on how to minimise the risk of developing a chest infection can be found here
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