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Acute bronchitis
How to treat acute bronchitis
Acute bronchitis is an acute inflammation of the bronchial mucosa, often accompanied by symptoms such as fever, cough, and productive cough. So, how should one treat acute bronchitis? Firstly, it's important to rest, stay warm, drink plenty of water, consume a light and easily digestible diet, and ensure that nutrition is adequate. Additionally, if the cause is a pathogenic infection, such as a bacterial infection, it is necessary to choose an effective antibiotic for treatment. Furthermore, symptomatic treatment is necessary; antitussive drugs can be used for a dry cough, expectorants for a productive cough, and antipyretic analgesics for fever. If there is bronchial spasm accompanied by chest tightness and asthma, asthma medications may be used.
What fruits to eat for acute bronchitis
During acute bronchitis, it's important to pay attention to your diet and mainly consume liquid or semi-liquid foods. You can eat porridge, soup noodles, vegetable soups, or stewed soups. Additionally, it's appropriate to eat some pears or grapefruit. Other fruits like apples are also good choices. These fruits contain a rich amount of vitamins that can enhance your immune system. Vitamin C in particular has anti-inflammatory and bactericidal effects, which can help in the treatment of bronchitis. It is advised to maintain a light diet during illness and avoid spicy, greasy, cold, and irritating foods. Furthermore, consider having some honey water, or foods like loquat, lily, or mung beans which can also be appropriate. Drinking these ingredients made into porridge or soup is also beneficial.
Is acute bronchitis asthma?
Acute bronchitis and bronchial asthma, although both are bronchial disorders, are not the same disease; acute bronchitis is not asthma. Acute bronchitis is an acute inflammation of the bronchial mucosa caused by various pathogenic factors, with common symptoms being fever, cough, and expectoration. Some patients may also experience chest tightness and wheezing. Treatment primarily involves antibiotics and cough suppressants with expectorants. Asthma, on the other hand, is characterized by chronic inflammation of the airways, high reactivity, and widespread variable reversible airflow limitation, with clinical manifestations mainly including recurrent episodes of wheezing, shortness of breath, chest tightness, or coughing. Treatment primarily involves bronchodilators such as theophylline, receptor agonists, and anti-inflammatory medications represented by corticosteroids, thus the treatments also differ.
Can acute bronchitis cause a fever?
Acute bronchitis can cause fever. In such cases, there is no need for excessive worry, as fever is a common symptom of acute bronchitis. It is advised to actively manage the fever. If the body temperature exceeds 38.5°C, take antipyretic medication; otherwise, use physical methods to reduce fever, such as wiping the patient's limbs and back with a warm towel to cool down; you can also apply fever cooling patches, or take some antipyretic medication to treat and alleviate symptoms; applying a cold towel to the forehead can also achieve the purpose of cooling. Additionally, let the patient rest more, avoid excessive fatigue, drink more water to enhance excretion, and improve their own resistance. At the same time, follow a doctor’s guidance to actively treat the symptoms. As the onset of acute bronchitis is often sudden, it is advised to address the symptoms appropriately.
Can you run with acute bronchitis?
It is not recommended to run when suffering from acute bronchitis. For this condition, it is usually necessary to rest. During the acute phase of the illness, running and similar physical exercises are not advised as they can be detrimental to the patient's condition. Patients with acute bronchitis should also pay attention to maintaining a light diet, avoiding spicy and irritating foods. Appropriate symptomatic treatment should be given, such as using cough suppressant medications. If a patient has persistent cough symptoms or develops purulent sputum, it’s crucial to check for the possible presence of pneumonia. This may require a chest CT and a complete blood count. If the patient has bacterial pneumonia, antibiotic treatment is necessary. Moreover, it is important to note that although patients with acute bronchitis should not run during the acute phase, running and exercising regularly, enhancing nutrition, and avoiding staying up late are measures that can help prevent acute bronchitis.
Why does acute bronchitis make you feel so tired?
Acute bronchitis is very exhausting, and this condition is mainly caused by two reasons. First, it is due to inflammation. After the infection, it is not necessarily confined to the trachea; it can release cytokines and inflammatory mediators throughout the body. These cytokines and inflammatory mediators can cause inflammatory effects throughout the body, leading many patients to feel sore limbs and fatigue. Second, during acute bronchitis, there can be a manifestation of relative hypoxia in the body. This is due to the disease, because the trachea itself is responsible for breathing. When there is an issue, the respiratory function will definitely be impaired, so the body will also experience fatigue and weakness due to hypoxia. All these symptoms are related to bronchitis. Once the symptoms of bronchitis improve, these symptoms can also improve.
Is acute bronchitis prone to recurrence?
Acute bronchitis is often due to the patient's low immune function, accidental exposure to cold or getting rained on, leading to an acute onset of bronchitis, causing clinical symptoms like fever, cough, sputum production, dyspnea, and wheezing. In clinical practice, acute bronchitis generally heals within about a week after timely and effective anti-infective treatment, cough suppression, expectoration facilitation, and asthma relief. Bronchitis is divided into acute bronchitis and chronic bronchitis. Acute bronchitis, generally after effective symptomatic treatment such as anti-infection, is not likely to recur frequently if the patient has a relatively good immune function.
Can acute bronchitis drink alcohol?
For acute bronchitis, it is generally not recommended to drink alcohol. Patients with acute bronchitis are advised to consume a light diet, avoiding spicy, irritating, and greasy foods, and to refrain from drinking alcohol, coffee, and strong tea. Patients with acute bronchitis, especially those who consume large amounts of alcohol, may experience a decrease in immunity and can even develop complications like pneumonia. Sometimes, acute bronchitis can also be accompanied by bacterial infections, and patients might need to take oral antibiotics for treatment. If a patient with acute bronchitis takes cephalosporin antibiotics, it is absolutely necessary to avoid alcohol, as alcohol can interact with cephalosporins and potentially trigger a disulfiram-like reaction, which in severe cases can lead to sudden stopping of breathing and heart function, posing a life-threatening risk. (Please use medication under the guidance of a doctor.)
Can you not exercise with acute bronchitis?
Acute bronchitis has a relatively rapid onset and occurs fairly frequently. It typically causes clinical symptoms such as fever, cough, sputum, shortness of breath, and wheezing. During an acute episode of bronchitis with fever, it is generally not advisable to engage in strenuous exercise, as the body’s ability to dissipate heat is already compromised due to the fever. Continuing to exercise might lead to a rapid increase in body temperature because intense physical activity enhances heat production while the cooling functions are relatively diminished. Therefore, it is not recommended to exercise during the feverish phase of acute bronchitis. Exercise can be considered when the body temperature returns to normal and other clinical symptoms have significantly improved.
How to treat acute bronchitis?
Acute bronchitis is an acute inflammation of the bronchi caused by various pathogenic factors and is relatively common in clinical practice. Symptoms mainly include coughing, production of sputum, and some patients may experience chest tightness, shortness of breath, fever, and blood in the sputum. For initial instances of acute bronchitis, it is important to first ensure rest, increase fluid intake, avoid fatigue, and avoid exposure to cold. Secondly, symptomatic treatment should be considered; cough suppressants can be used for coughs that are dry or produce little sputum, and expectorants should be used when the cough produces sputum that is difficult to expel. If there is chest tightness and wheezing, asthma medications should be chosen. If fever is present, antipyretic and analgesic medications should be used for symptomatic treatment. Thirdly, the use of antibiotics is appropriate only when there is evidence of bacterial infection; otherwise, it is best to avoid them. Treatment with antibiotics should be under a doctor's guidance, and self-medication should be avoided. With the above treatments, acute bronchitis can generally be controlled, but a minority of patients with weaker constitutions may develop chronic conditions.