To help prevent acute bronchitis:
- Avoid smoking.
- Avoid exposure to second-hand smoke and do not expose children to second-hand smoke.
- Practice good hand hygiene.
- Keep you and your child up to date with recommended immunizations.
Lung Disease and Respiratory System
Diseases, pollutants and genetics can affect your respiratory health. The simple cold - which is caused by more than 200 different viruses - inflames the upper respiratory tract, resulting in a cough, runny nose and sneezing. A more severe cough combined with mucus is a sign of bronchitis, where the membranes lining the bronchial tubes become inflamed. The inflammatory lung disease asthma affects more than 20 million people, making airways constrict when exposed to irritants like dust, pet dander and cigarette smoke. Pneumonia, another inflammation of the lungs, can occur because of a bacterial or viral infection. People suffering from cystic fibrosis, an inherited lung disease, frequently battle bacterial infections and airways clogged with thick and sticky mucus.
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How you treat your bronchitis depends on your specific symptoms. The goal is to relieve those that are the most bothersome. Your doctor might recommend these treatments for bronchitis:
- breathing in warm and moist air using humidifier or a warm shower
- over-the-counter pain medications, including Tylenol and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs)
- over-the-counter cough and cold medicines
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Antibiotics will rarely be needed since acute bronchitis and bronchiolitis are almost always caused by a virus and chronic bronchitis requires other therapies. However, treatment may be prescribed to relieve symptoms.
When bronchitis is caused by a virus or irritation in the air (like cigarette smoke), antibiotic treatment will not help it get better. Since acute bronchitis almost always gets better on its own, it is better to wait and take antibiotics only when they are needed. Taking antibiotics when they are not needed can be harmful.
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For bronchitis, you should see a healthcare provider if you or your child has:
- temperature higher than 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit
- a fever and cough with thick or bloody mucus
- a chronic heart or lung problem
- shortness of breath or trouble breathing
- symptoms that last more than 3 weeks
- repeated episodes of bronchitis/bronchiolitis
If your child is younger than three months of age and has a fever, it’s important to always call your healthcare provider right away.
Your healthcare provider can determine if you or your child has acute bronchitis, chronic bronchitis, bronchiolitis or another type of respiratory infection. Then a decision can be made about possible needed treatment.
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Sigma Nursing answeredSee All 2 AnswersThe main symptom of both acute and chronic bronchitis is a cough that usually produces mucus or phlegm from the bronchial tubes, which are the airways that connect your windpipe (trachea) and your lungs. Chest pain, wheezing, shortness of breath, fatigue and a fever are also common symptoms of acute bronchitis. Though most of these symptoms rarely last longer than 10 days, the cough may linger for up to several weeks. Acute bronchitis is often preceded by a cold or the flu. In the case of chronic bronchitis, which is more serious, the cough, wheezing and chest discomfort last a long time (at least three months a year and two years in a row) and the cough, often called "smoker's cough," can produce a lot of mucus.
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Acute bronchitis, or chest cold, is a condition that occurs when the bronchial tubes in the lungs become inflamed. Causes of bronchitis include several types of viruses, most often:
- respiratory syncytial virus (RSV)
- adenovirus
- influenza
- parainfluenza
- bacteria, in rare cases
- pollutants (airborne chemicals or irritants)
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HealthyWomen answeredSee All 2 AnswersAcute bronchitis is an inflammation of the bronchi—the air passages or tubes to the lungs—and often develops from the flu. Symptoms include:
- A fever, 100 to 102 degrees Fahrenheit.
- An irritating, dry, painful cough that starts to produce small amounts of white or light yellow sputum after two or three days. At this stage the fever often recedes and the pain from coughing diminishes. If your sputum is yellow-green or green in color, you may have a bacterial infection.
- Even after the condition improves, a slight cough commonly remains for another week or two. Most cases of acute bronchitis simply represent continued inflammation from viral infection rather than a bacterial complication. Many people benefit from short-term use of an inhaled bronchodilator such as albuterol (Accuneb, Proventil, Ventolin or ProAir).
- If you have a cough for three weeks or more, you should be carefully evaluated by your healthcare provider to rule out pneumonia or bacterial bronchitis. If you are producing green secretions when you cough, you may have a bacterial infection and need antibiotics.
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Jumo Health answeredThe trachea, or windpipe, divides into two large airways or tubes. Each of these airways is called a bronchus. Each bronchus then branches off into smaller tubes that divide many times into smaller and smaller tubes until they end in tiny sacs called alveoli.
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HCA Houston Healthcare Pearland answeredLung disorders that can cause chest pain include:
- Pulmonary embolism - This cause of chest pain occurs when a blood clot becomes lodged in a lung (pulmonary) artery, blocking blood flow to lung tissue.
- Pleurisy - This is when the membrane that covers the lungs becomes inflamed. Pleurisy can cause chest pain that's made worse with inhaling or coughing.
- Collapsed lung - A collapsed lung occurs when air leaks into the space between the lung and the ribs. The chest pain associated with a collapsed lung typically begins suddenly and can last for hours.
- Pulmonary hypertension - High blood pressure in the arteries carrying blood to the lungs (pulmonary hypertension) also can produce chest pain.
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Intermountain Healthcare answeredSee All 4 AnswersCall 911 or go to the hospital emergency room for:
- A baby who can't eat, drink, or cry because of coughing
- Trouble speaking more than 4 or 5 words at a time because of coughing
- Chest pain that goes up to the neck, arm, or jaw
- Passing out
- A lot of trouble breathing
- Coughing up blood or pink, foamy mucus