Oct 3, 2007 1:15 am US/Pacific
Good Question: What Is A Hiccup, Really?
by Pallas Hupé
(CBS13)
"A hiccup basically is where there is an involuntary spasm of this muscle called the diaphragm. The diaphragm is a pretty big muscle that sits right below the lungs and it helps us to breathe normally but it can go a little haywire," said Dr. Arfan Din.
Dr. Din says the diaphragm sits right below the frenic nerve. If something irritates that, it causes a spasm, and forces air up and out.
"It bounces up against the vocal cords right here in the larynx. When that occurs, and vocal cords collapse like that, that basically causes the sound of a hiccup," said Dr. Din.
What causes the spasm to begin with?
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"Many different reasons. Sometimes overeating, swallowing too much air," said Dr. Din.
So what about those extreme cases we show you on the news sometimes?
"Interestingly, we don't really know. We think sometimes that the diaphragm is being irritated by something - it could be a tumor some irritation to the nerve," said Dr. Din.
Dr. Din says a situation that serious often requires muscle relaxants and in very rare cases surgery.
As for what stops your everyday case of hiccups, the scientific suggestion is to breathe into a paper bag.
"That changes the level of carbon dioxide in the bloodstream which is thought to help," said Dr. Din.
Or he says just be patient and relax. Sometime easier said than done.
In serious cases, the surgical procedure slices or crushes the frenic nerve.
(© MMVII, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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