Bronchitis is an infection of the bronchial tubes that carry air from your throat to your lungs. When infected, bronchial tubes become inflamed, making it difficult to breath, and produce mucus which causes coughing. Other symptoms may include a slight fever, sore throat, muscle pain when breathing, and wheezing. It is even possible, during acute bronchitis, to cough so hard that the explosive vacuum you create in your lungs can crack or otherwise hurt your ribs, which makes further coughing even more painful.
Bronchitis can be either chronic or acute. Acute bronchitis is often the result of a cold or flu, in which case it is said the cold 'turned into bronchitis'. Acute bronchitis is most often caused by a virus, rather than bacteria, so taking antibiotics will probably not help.
Acute bronchitis will usually go away on its own. The best treatment is bed rest and fluids. Because bronchitis causes the buildup of mucus, an expectorant cough syrup can help thin down the mucus and make it easier to cough up. Drinking fluids will also help with this, as well as replace the fluids you lose to the infection. See your doctor if you are still having symptoms after two weeks - you may have another respiratory problem.
The best way to avoid acute bronchitis is the same way you would try to avoid a cold. Wash your hands often, disinfect as necessary during cold season, and avoid crowded or confined spaces if there's 'something going around'.
Chronic bronchitis is a condition most often seen in smokers. This is a more permanent inflammation of the bronchial tubes caused by the irritation of cigarette smoke. Chronic bronchitis is like an on-going, less severe case of acute bronchitis. The bronchial tubes are always slightly inflamed, mucus is always being produced, and the result is the 'smoker's hack'. The best cure for chronic bronchitis is to stop smoking at once, but if that is unworkable for you, cutting down can reduce the stress on your bronchial tubes and allow them to recover somewhat. But you need to stop.
For either acute bronchitis or chronic bronchitis, signs and symptoms may include:
Cough
Production of mucus (sputum), which can be clear, white, yellowish-gray or green in color
Fatigue
Slight fever and chills
Chest discomfort
If you have acute bronchitis, you may have a nagging cough that lingers for several weeks after the bronchitis resolves. Chronic bronchitis is defined as a productive cough that lasts at least three months for two consecutive years. If you have chronic bronchitis, you're likely to have periods when your signs and symptoms worsen. At those times, you may have acute bronchitis on top of your chronic bronchitis. In some cases, the cough may disappear only to reappear later.
See your doctor if your cough:
Lasts more than three weeks
Prevents you from sleeping
Is accompanied by fever over 100.4 F (38 C)
Produces discolored mucus
Produces blood (hemoptysis)
Is associated with wheezing or shortness of breath
Decreasing inflammation is the goal for treating acute bronchitis.
Albuterol inhalation, either with a hand held device (meter dosed inhaler, MDI) or nebulizer will help dilate the bronchial tubes.
Short-term steroid therapy will help minimize inflammation within the bronchial tubes. Prednisone is a common prescription medication that enhances the anti-inflammatory effects of the steroids produced within the body by the adrenal glands. Topical inhaled steroids may also be of benefit with fewer potential side effects.
It is important to keep the patient comfortable by treating fever with acetaminophen or ibuprofen. Drinking plenty of fluid will keep the patient well hydrated and hydration keeps secretions into the bronchial tubes more liquid and easier to expel.
Antibiotics are not necessarily indicated for the treatment of acute bronchitis. Occasionally they may be prescribed should a bacterial infection be present in addition to the usual virus that causes acute bronchitis. However, most acute bronchitis is caused by viruses and no antibiotics are needed.
Although good hydration will help remove secretions into the bronchi, other treatments (for example, Mucinex, Robitussin and others that contain guaifenesin) can help clear secretions though this is often a highly variable finding.
Cough is a very violent action that results in dynamic collapse of the airways. This collapse results in the walls of the airways banging against one another. This action of cough can cause further inflammation and help perpetuate the problem by sustaining and increasing inflammation. Cough suppression with cough drops or other liquid suppressants (for example, Vicks 44, Halls, and cough syrups that contain dextromethorphan) help to break this vicious cycle. In addition, if the person smokes, they must stop. If the acute bronchitis is being caused by inhaled smoke or chemicals, the patient should be removed from these irritant sources.
The treatment of acute bronchitis is geared toward prevention, control, and relief of symptoms (supportive care). In some cases, the following is all that is needed:
drink plenty of fluids to maintain proper hydration (avoiding dehydration and humidify air); and
use of acetaminophen and ibuprofen to treat fever and decrease the inflammatory response.
The treatments section above covers those actions that can usually be done at home. However, people with medical conditions such as high blood pressure should be careful to choose those products approved for patients with high blood pressure because some cough/cold formulations may further increase a person's blood pressure to elevated or dangerous levels. People with diabetes should also choose cough and cold products that will not affect their blood glucose levels. If individuals are unsure which products are safe, they should contact their primary health care practitioner for advice.
For patients with underlying lung disease such as asthma or COPD, increased use of albuterol or similar inhaled medications may be indicated. However, the health care practitioner should be contacted when a patient considers altering their medication usage.