| itis is a disease which affects many people and has | | | | easily and will disappear by the end of day five if |
| affected one person at least once in a lifetime. Until | | | | treatment is followed exactly. |
| now doctors have been prescribing antibiotics for | | | | Studies have to be done in order to see whether |
| bronchitis but researchers have proven that antibiotics | | | | antibiotic treatment is really necessary in these patients |
| are not so necessary in treating this condition and | | | | who suffer of bronchitis or it can be used only in |
| using them frequently only helps drug resistance to | | | | severe cases. The idea is to avoid using antibiotics in |
| develop. | | | | excess as multi drug resistance can develop and soon |
| Besides the drug-based on treatment the patient | | | | the doctors will not be able to treat as common |
| should know that rest and well hydration are essential | | | | infection due to a lack of active antibiotics. |
| for a quick recovery. Fever is treated with ASA and | | | | As every year more than 10 million patients are |
| acetaminophen. Because bronchitis gives cough the | | | | treated in the emergency room for bronchitis with |
| patient should take antitussive medication like: | | | | antibiotics, a group of researchers decided to see |
| chlophedianol, levopropoxyphene, dextromethorphan, | | | | whether antibiotics like azithromycin are effective and |
| and codeine. They will act upon the medullary cough | | | | really useful in treating bronchitis. The study was |
| center and will suppress the cough reflex. In case the | | | | multicenter, randomized, and double-blind. |
| patient coughs and has bronchial secretions which | | | | 448 patients which presented cough with or without |
| have to be expelled the doctor will prescribe | | | | sputum were taken in consideration for this study. |
| expectorants. They are decreasing the viscosity of | | | | From the whole group, 340 were diagnosed with |
| the secretions helping them to be expelled better when | | | | bronchitis, and 220 met the criteria for randomization. In |
| coughing. In the composition of expectorants iodides, | | | | the end189 patients completed the study. From these |
| ammonium chloride, terpin hydrate, syrup of ipecac, | | | | 189 patients, 97 received 250 mg/day of azithromycin, |
| guaifenesin, and even creosote can be found. In some | | | | and 92 received 250 mg/day of vitamin C. Besides |
| cases acacia, glycerin, honey, or an extract of Prunus | | | | these two medications dextromethorphan syrup and |
| can be added to the composition of the expectorant. | | | | an albuterol inhaler were also given to the patients who |
| In case the patient has purulent acute bronchitis, | | | | used them every 6 hours as needed. At 3 and 7 days |
| antibiotic treatment is necessary. Tetracycline, | | | | the cough symptoms and limitations on activity were |
| erythromycin, amoxicillin and ampicillin are suitable for | | | | assessed. At the end of the study the researchers |
| treating this type of bronchitis as they are active upon | | | | concluded that no statistical differences existed |
| the bacteria responsible for producing this disease. | | | | between the two groups. This means that antibiotic |
| In patients who have chronic bronchitis an | | | | treatment is not so necessary for the cases of |
| exacerbation of the symptoms which contain purulent | | | | bronchitis and antitussive medication and |
| sputum seems to be worse than in those who have | | | | beta2-agonists are the only ones who are really worth |
| mucoid sputum. These symptoms can be managed | | | | to be taken along with keeping a good hydration. |