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Acute bronchitis

Bronchitis acuta · Akutní bronchitida

What it is

Viral inflammation of the airways causing a cough that lasts up to three weeks; antibiotics do not help otherwise healthy people.

Symptoms & signs

  • Cough, dry then productive
  • yellow or green sputum — not a sign of bacteria
  • sore chest
  • mild fever
  • wheeze

🚩 Get help if…

  • call 112 / 911 now Breathless at rest, lips turning blue, or confused
  • see a doctor soon Coughing up blood
  • see a doctor soon Fever over 38 °C for more than 3 days, or chest pain on breathing
  • see a doctor soon Cough lasting over 3 weeks, or worse with a lung or heart disease

Where it strikes

Medical treatment

  • Diagnosed from the history; chest X-ray if pneumonia is suspected
  • Antibiotics — cough about half a day shorter, more side effects not confirmed in trials
  • paracetamol or ibuprofen
  • Cough suppressants (dextromethorphan) — small effect mixed evidence
  • Salbutamol inhaler without wheeze — no benefit not confirmed in trials
  • test for whooping cough if the cough drags on

Natural & lifestyle

  • Rest and fluids
  • Honey (over age one) — eases cough mixed evidence
  • stop smoking

Emerging & experimental

  • Finger-prick CRP test to cut antibiotic use trials support
  • procalcitonin-guided prescribing

Alternative, off-label & anecdotal

Approaches used outside the guidelines, with what their supporters report and what testing has found so far.

  • Pelargonium sidoides — some benefit in low-quality trials mixed evidence
  • Ivy leaf extract — small trials mixed evidence
  • Echinacea — trials in colds disagree mixed evidence

ICD codes