You sit down in the auditorium, starting your midterm, the room is silent. Suddenly, you hear a hiccup echo from behind you. Your turn around and see me, embarrassment written all over my face as other heads turn for a second to find the interruption. This scenario constantly occurs when I’m in a silent room. Why? Because I don’t have hiccups that last for a day. No. I have hiccups almost every hour for over four years of my life. In my life, I’ve been identified as the “hiccup girl” due to my chronic hiccups. Not fun. In my perspective, hiccups –either hiccups that last for an hour or for years– have a large impact on one’s life and it’s significant to understand what they actually are.
Hiccups starting in the Diaphragm
The diaphragm is a muscle that plays an important in breathing, located between the stomach and lungs.[1] Hiccups are brief and involuntary muscle contractions of the diaphragm.[2] The muscle contraction is followed by a closure of the glottis (opening of the vocal cords), in which the vocal cords close. When you inhale against the closed glottis, you’re adding pressure in the thorax, the region between the neck and abdomen.[3] Due to the diaphragm’s spasm, air abruptly rushes into your lungs and the “hic” sound is created.[4]
In essence, your muscles contract and vocal cords close on you. Figuratively, it’s like your body is telling you to be quiet for a second. Yet, your body also makes the “hic” sound in the quietest settings to grab everyone’s attention.
Intractable Hiccups: They Excessively Prolong
Generally, hiccups last for a few hours. Persistent hiccups last over 48 hours. Rare cases are intractable hiccups that prolong for over 2 months.[2] Intractable hiccups dip into the concerns and dangers for one’s health. The cause of hiccups is under research, but a general cause of prolonged hiccups is found to be an irritation or damage to the nerves located between the brainstem and spinal cord.[1] Stress may induce long-term hiccups.[5] Another cause is a lesion—tissue damage—in the brain.
Interesting to know is that the science community believes prolonged hiccups are symptoms of illnesses and disorders. For example, intractable hiccups are an “unrecognized symptom” of esophageal cancer.[2] In a case study of patients with esophageal tumors, 27% had persistent hiccups longer than 48 hours. Researchers speculate that the cause of prolonged hiccups may be due to the effect of a tumor or to dilatation of esophagus.[2] It’s scary to think that my case of hiccups could be caused by a tumor. However, the tumor being a cause is a speculation and I recommend not to do a self-diagnosis; consult medical resources and professionals to learn about cases of chronic hiccups.
Is there Proper Treatment?
For the normal case of hiccups, holding your breath or drinking water may help to get rid of hiccups. However, those are not solutions to resolve prolonged hiccups. Medical treatment is met when a proper diagnosis of lesion responsible for the hiccup is conducted. Individuals may undergo drug therapy and be prescribed certain medications depending on the type of brain tissue damage.[6] Acupuncture is another method of treating prolonged hiccups.[2] Overall, it’s significant to realize how mighty and dangerous intractable hiccups can be.
In my life, I have not treated my own case of hiccups. But the next time I go to my doctor’s appointment, I’m raising attention to my intractable hiccups. My advice if you have these intractable hiccups: after learning about some specifics of hiccups, inquire about intractable hiccups to your doctor.
References:
[1] WebMD (n.d.) Hiccups: Why You Get Them & How To Make Them Stop. Retrieved from https://www.webmd.com/digestive-disorders/why-do-i-hiccup#2
[2] Chang, F.-Y., & Lu, C.-L. (2012). Hiccup: Mystery, Nature and Treatment. Journal of Neurogastroenterology and Motility, 18(2), 123–130. https://doi.org/10.5056/jnm.2012.18.2.123
[3] Howes, D. (2012). Hiccups: A new explanation for the mysterious reflex. Bioessays, 34(6), 451–453. https://doi.org/10.1002/bies.201100194
[4] Mayo Clinic (n.d.) Hiccups. Retrieved from http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/hiccups/symptoms-causes/syc-20352613
[5] Cunha, J.P (n.d.) Hiccups. Retrieved from https://www.emedicinehealth.com/hiccups/article_em.htm
[6] National Organization for Rare Disorders (n.d.) Hiccups, Chronic. Retrieved from https://rarediseases.org/rare-diseases/hiccups-chronic/
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