Understanding Persistent Nasal Congestion & Bronchitis

Question
Dear Glen,
     A number of years ago i was diagnosed with copd ,now,i never seem to get colds and flu,and yet a friend of mine has suffered from bronchitis for many years ...for nearly eight months now {after getting over a flu) she is still suffering from congestion in her tubes....not in the lungs but in the tubes...what could be causing this constant congestion she is getting?....she has parched ears and has suffered with sinus for many years .  She says her ears have a sort of stinging to the ringing she gets in her ears.What could cause this constant congestion and the strange sting in her ears?.. for myself.. how come there are no colds and flu's when I have been diagnosed with this condition?  ..I do get post nasal drip and a gluggy feeling in the tonsil area like there is a lump there (my friend has this same feeling in her throat too)yet when we have had our throats checked the ent says everything is clear?  I do not understand this...can you help us with some answers please?
When my friend has checked her tonsils she also has found that she has a tonsil stone in it ...she has tried to dislodge it but cannot remove it...what causes this to occur and how can she get it out....she has looked in my throat and says that i also have something similiar in one of my tonsils....is it food thats caught there? or what could it be? ..Thank you for your time and I hope you can help us with this.

Answer
Hi Marj,
I'm not Glen. Charles Cusumano PA-C.
A diagnosis of COPD and one of Bronchitis can't be equated. One isn't worse than the other necessarily. A lot depends of chronicity of disease, cause of disease and level of seriousness over all. Either can be bad, but neither is worse than the other in all people.
As for tonsilar stones, there is really no need to remove them. They are cause by compacted and calcified food debris.
It is hard to speculate as to your friends ear problem. If her eustacheon tubes are chronically blocked, that can be from allergies or upper respiratory infection but rarely a physical blockage. Her treatment for bronchitis and possibly allergies needs to be optimized for the best outcome.