Bronchitis
You don't need to be Editor-In-Chief to add or edit content to WikiDoc. You can begin to add to or edit text on this WikiDoc page by clicking on the edit button at the top of this page. Next enter or edit the information that you would like to appear here. Once you are done editing, scroll down and click the Save page button at the bottom of the page.
| Bronchitis Classification and external resources | |
| ICD-10 | J20.-J21. |
|---|---|
| ICD-9 | 490-491 |
| MeSH | D001991 |
|
WikiDoc Resources for Bronchitis | |
|
Articles | |
|---|---|
|
Most recent articles on Bronchitis | |
|
Media | |
|
Evidence Based Medicine | |
|
Clinical Trials | |
|
Ongoing Trials on Bronchitis at Clinical Trials.gov Clinical Trials on Bronchitis at Google
| |
|
Guidelines / Policies / Govt | |
|
US National Guidelines Clearinghouse on Bronchitis
| |
|
Books | |
|
News | |
|
Commentary | |
|
Definitions | |
|
Patient Resources / Community | |
|
Patient resources on Bronchitis Discussion groups on Bronchitis Patient Handouts on Bronchitis Directions to Hospitals Treating Bronchitis Risk calculators and risk factors for Bronchitis
| |
|
Healthcare Provider Resources | |
|
Causes & Risk Factors for Bronchitis | |
|
Continuing Medical Education (CME) | |
|
International | |
|
| |
|
Businness | |
|
Experimental / Informatics | |
Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1] Phone:617-525-6884
Please Take Over This Page and Apply to be Editor-In-Chief for this topic: There can be one or more than one Editor-In-Chief. You may also apply to be an Associate Editor-In-Chief of one of the subtopics below. Please mail us [2] to indicate your interest in serving either as an Editor-In-Chief of the entire topic or as an Associate Editor-In-Chief for a subtopic. Please be sure to attach your CV and or biographical sketch.
Overview
Bronchitis is an inflammation of the bronchi (medium-size airways) in the lungs. Acute bronchitis is usually caused by viruses or bacteria and may last several days or weeks. Chronic bronchitis is not necessarily caused by infection and is generally part of a syndrome called chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD); it is defined clinically as a persistent cough that produces sputum (phlegm), for at least three months in two consecutive years. The remainder of this article deals with acute bronchitis only. This is caused by a viral infection, such as a cold, or a bacterial infection. It also can result from breathing irritating fumes, such as those of tobacco smoke or polluted air. Constant coughing is the main symptom. Either type(chronic or acute) may lead to asthma or pneumonia.
Acute bronchitis is characterized by cough and sputum (phlegm) production and symptoms related to the obstruction of the airways by the inflamed airways and the phlegm, such as shortness of breath and wheezing. Diagnosis is by clinical examination and sometimes microbiological examination of the phlegm. Treatment may be with antibiotics (if a bacterial infection is suspected), bronchodilators (to relieve breathlessness) and other treatments.
Signs and symptoms
Bronchitis may be indicated by an expectorating cough,shortness of breath (dyspnea) and wheezing and occasionally chest pains, fever, and fatigue or malaise.
Diagnosis
A physical examination will often reveal decreased intensity of breath sounds, wheeze (rhonchi) and prolonged expiration. Most doctors rely on the presence of a persistent dry or wet cough as evidence of bronchitis.
A variety of tests may be performed in patients presenting with cough and shortness of breath:
- A chest X-ray that reveals hyperinflation; collapse and consolidation of lung areas would support a diagnosis of pneumonia. Some conditions that predispose to bronchitis may be indicated by chest radiography.
- A sputum sample showing neutrophil granulocytes (inflammatory white blood cells) and culture showing that has pathogenic microorganisms such as Streptococcus spp.
- A blood test would indicate inflammation (as indicated by a raised white blood cell count and elevated C-reactive protein).
- Neutrophils infiltrate the lung tissue, aided by damage to the airways caused by irritation.
- Damage caused by irritation of the airways leads to inflammation and leads to neutrophils being present
- Mucosal hypersecretion is promoted by a substance released by neutrophils
- Further obstruction to the airways is caused by more goblet cells in the small airways. This is typical of chronic bronchitis
- Although infection is not the reason or cause of chronic bronchitis it is seen to aid in sustaining the bronchitis.
Treatment
Antibiotics
In most cases, acute bronchitis is caused by viruses, not bacteria and it will go away on its own without antibiotics. To treat acute bronchitis that appears to be caused by a bacterial infection, or as a precaution, antibiotics may be given.[1]
If antibiotics are used, a meta-analysis found that "amoxicillin/clavulanic acid, macrolides, second-generation or third-generation cephalosporins, and quinolones" may be more effective.[1]
Smoking cessation
To help the bronchial tree heal faster and not make bronchitis worse, smokers should completely quit smoking. [1]
Prognosis
Acute bronchitis usually lasts approximately 20 or 30 days. It may accompany or closely follow a cold or the flu, or may occur on its own. Bronchitis usually begins with a dry cough, including waking the sufferer at night. After a few days it progresses to a wetter or productive cough, which may be accompanied by fever, fatigue, and headache. The fever, fatigue, and malaise may last only a few days; but the wet cough may last up to several weeks.
Should the cough last longer than a month, some doctors may issue a referral to an otolaryngologist (ear, nose and throat doctor) to see if a condition other than bronchitis is causing the irritation. It is possible that having irritated bronchial tubes for as long as a few months may inspire asthmatic conditions in some patients.
In addition, if one starts coughing mucus tinged with blood, one should see a doctor. In rare cases, doctors may conduct tests to see if the cause is a serious condition such as tuberculosis or lung cancer.
Prevention
In 1985, University of Newcastle, Australia Professor Robert Clancy developed an oral vaccine for acute bronchitis. This vaccine was commercialised four years later as Broncostat.[3]
References
External links
Online medical references:
- Bronchitis Lungs OnLine
- Acute Bronchitis FamilyDoctor.org (American Academy of Family Physicians)
de:Akute Bronchitis fr:Bronchite gl:Bronquite id:Bronkitis is:Berkjukvef it:Bronchite lb:Bronchite lt:Bronchitas nl:Bronchitis ja:気管支炎 no:Bronkitt nn:Bronkittsq:Bronkiti akut sr:Хронични бронхитис fi:Keuhkoputkentulehdus sv:Bronkitur:قصباتس yi:בראנקייטיס
Acknowledgement and Attribution Regarding Sources of Content
Some of the initial content on this page may be incorporated in part from copyleft sources in the public domain including wikis such as Wikipedia and AskDrWiki. Drug information for patients came from the The National Library of Medicine. Infectious disease information may have come from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). Differential Diagnoses are drawn from clinicians as well as an amalgamation of 3 sources: 1.The Disease Database; 2. Kahan, Scott, Smith, Ellen G. In A Page: Signs and Symptoms. Malden, Massachusetts: Blackwell Publishing, 2004:3; 3. Sailer, Christian, Wasner, Susanne. Differential Diagnosis Pocket. Hermosa Beach, CA: Borm Bruckmeir Publishing LLC, 2002:7 .
