Diagnosis and Treatment Options in Acute Bronchitis

摘要

Acute bronchitis is the fifth most common diagnosis for patients presenting with a primary symptom of cough, with or without phlegm, lasting from 1 to 3 weeks. The disease is a self-limiting inflammation of the large airways within the lung that is characterized by a cough, without the presence of pneumonia, as confirmed by the absence of an infiltrate on chest radiograph. The cough may last for up to 3 weeks in about 50% of patients as a result of either an infectious or noninfec-tious etiology. The triggering factor leads to an inflammatory response with airway hyperresponsiveness and mucus production.