Chronic bronchitis: symptoms and treatment

If your cough does not stop for three months, every year, for two consecutive years, then most likely you have become a victim of chronic bronchitis. This unpleasant disease over time is able to progress, thereby inflaming the bronchi, but, fortunately, without hitting the lungs.

The etiology of chronic bronchitis is simple, it all begins with a common cold, where a distinctive sign is the sudden fluctuations in the external temperature of the body or cooling. It should also be taken into account that tuberculosis infection plays an important role in the manifestation of chronic bronchitis, as a violation of blood circulation in the lungs often leads to changes in oxidative processes. Inflammation of the accessory cavities can also cause chronic bronchitis in children.

Faced for the first time with such a disease, the patient is likely to confuse chronic bronchitis, the symptoms of which can not be immediately determined, with the usual cough manifested in a cold, damp period in most people with weak immunity. But if the cough does not stop and at the same time is accompanied by mild anemia, frequent fatigue and a sharp decrease in physical development, this should be the first signal for consultation with a doctor.

In chronic bronchitis, fluoroscopy will show the compaction of the roots of the lungs with a possible increase in bronchial lymph nodes. Significant local changes in the lung area are mostly difficult to notice, only percussion sounds acquire a tampanic hue with unstable dry rales. The shape of the chest differs, mainly acquiring a cylindrical and uniformly narrowed.

Other signs of chronic bronchitis do not allow for a clear diagnosis. Nevertheless, an intensified cough, shortness of breath during physical exertion, increased sputum, malaise, fatigue and even perspiration at night should lead to the thought that perhaps you are ill with such a dangerous disease as chronic bronchitis, the symptoms of which, although unclear at first, but in the future Can lead to the formation of chronic pneumonia.

If the doctor has detected chronic bronchitis, the symptoms of which did not have time to expand to extremely dangerous, the treatment should first of all be aimed at eliminating the inflammatory process and restoring immunity. Antibiotics and sulfonamides will be most suitable in the fight against infection. Antibiotic therapy is prescribed taking into account the sensitivity of bronchial secretions. In general, inhalations of phytoncides of garlic and onions are prescribed, which are sufficient to be performed twice a day for 12-14 days. One course should consist of no less than 20 inhalations, preferably with a provisional conservative sanation of nasopharyngeal foci.

At the second stage of treatment the bronchial patency is restored, which is the key link in the therapy of bronchitis. Here are prescribed drugs expectorant, mucolytic and bronchospasmolytic action. Basically, these are medications containing potassium iodide and infusions of althey root, plantain, mucolytics, thermopsis, and coltsfoot leaves, which contain proteolytic enzymes that reduce the viscosity of sputum and restore the immune system.

When the cough begins to gradually subside, chronic bronchitis, whose symptoms are less frequent every day, can be treated with vitamin therapy, in which vitamins B, as well as 1 g per day of ascorbic and nicotinic acid, are prescribed.

It is recommended not to begin self-treatment, but immediately to consult specialists who fully examine the patient and prescribe medication individually, based on anamnesis.