Chronic Bronchitis- Causes, Symptoms,Types, Diagnosis And Treatment

What is Chronic Bronchitis : 

 Bronchitis is an inflammation of the airways in the lungs. Airways are the tubes in your lungs that air passes through. They are also called bronchial tubes.Bronchitis causes a cough that produces mucus (sometimes called sputum), trouble breathing and a feeling of tightness in your chest.Chronic bronchitis is lasts longer than 3 months.

 Types of Chronic Bronchitis : 

 There are two main types of bronchitis 01.Acute (short term) and 02. Chronic (ongoing). 

 01.Acute (short term)Bronchitis :
 Acute bronchitis is bronchitis that is short-lived; the bronchitis lasts about two weeks and usually people recover with no permanent damage to the bronchial tree. 
 02. Chronic (ongoing)Bronchitis : 
 Chronic bronchitis is defined as a cough that occurs every day with sputum production that lasts for at least 3 months, two years in a row.Chronic bronchitis is a serious, long-term medical condition. Early diagnosis and treatment, combined with quitting smoking and avoiding secondhand smoke, can improve quality of life. The chance of complete recovery is low for people who have severe chronic bronchitis.

 Causes of Chronic Bronchitis : 

There can be many causes of chronic bronchitis-
 01. Cigarette smoking is the main cause of chronic bronchitis.about 90% of cases of chronic bronchitis are    directly or indirectly related with Cigarette smoking.
 02. Long Term Pneumonia.
 03. smog, industrial pollutants, and solvents
 04. Viral and bacterial infections that result in acute bronchitis may lead to chronic bronchitis.
 05. Also, underlying disease processes (for example, asthma, cystic fibrosis, immunodeficiency, congestive heart failure, familial genetic predisposition to bronchitis, and congenital or acquired dilation of the bronchioles, known as bronchiectasis) may cause chronic bronchitis to develop, but these are infrequent causes compared to cigarette smoking.

Signs and symptoms of Chronic Bronchitis :

 01. Cough (also known as a productive cough, that produces sputum).
 02. Shortness of breath.
 03. Chest pains.
 04. Fever .
 05. Mucus is often green or yellowish green and also may be orange or pink.
 06.Fatigue.
 07. Muscle aches.
 08. Nasal congestion.
 09. Viral or bacterial lung infection. 

 How is chronic bronchitis diagnosed?

   01. A physical examination will often reveal diminished breath sounds.
   02. Pulmonary Function Tests (PFT)
   03. A chest X-ray that reveals hyperinflation; collapse and consolidation of lung areas would support diagnosis of pneumonia.
   04. complete blood count (CBC) and C-reactive protein)
   05. High Resolution Computed Tomography (HRCT)
   06. CT scan of the chest 

 Treatment of Chronic Bronchitis :

 Only about 5-10% of bronchitis cases are caused by a bacterial infection. Most cases of bronchitis are caused by a viral infection and are “self-limited” and resolve themselves in a few weeks. Your doctor may prescribe a medicine called a bronchodilator to treat your chronic bronchitis. This medicine dilates (or opens) the airways in your lungs and helps you breathe better. If you have severe shortness of breath, your doctor may also prescribe medicine (such as theophylline) for you to take in pill form.Antibiotics (amoxicillin or doxycycline) may be needed if you get a lung infection along with your chronic bronchitis. Your doctor may also prescribe oxygen therapy.Exercising regularly can strengthen the muscles that help you breathe.

Definition, Types, and Causes Asthma

Definition of asthma

Asthma is a lung disease that causes people with chronic breathing difficult. This is because of the muscle around respiratory tract, inflammation, pain, swelling, and irritation in the channel of breath in the lungs.

Types of Asthma

Actually there are several types of asthma. Understanding the specific type of asthma you, can help you get the most effective treatment. Some types of asthma:

* Allergic asthma
* Exercise induced asthma
* Occupation asthma
* Cough variant asthma
* Nocturnal (nighttime) asthma

Asthma Causes

Asthma has increased dramatically for several decades. Wikipedia.org in the segment about the causes of asthma, “In people with asthma, respiratory tract constriction response to a stimulus, which in the normal lung does not affect the respiratory tract. Stricture can be triggered by different stimulus, such as pollen, dust, animal fur, smoke, cold air and sports .

On an asthma attack, smooth muscles of the spastic bronki and overlay network that funnels the air because of the swelling and inflammation mucus discharge in the channel to air. This will reduce the diameter of the airways (called bronkokonstriksi) and refinement of this result must exert every effort in order to breathe.

Certain cells in the airways (particularly mast cells) was suspected to be responsible for the beginning of this first occurrence of stricture. Along the mast cells release bronki materials such as histamin and leukotrien the cause: – smooth muscle contraction – increased mucus formation – white blood cells move to specific bronki. Mast cell as a material issue a response to something that they recognize as foreign substances (alergen), such as pollen, fine dust that is in the home or fur.

But asthma can also occur in some people with certain allergies. The same reaction occurs when people are doing sports or in cold weather. Stress and fear can also trigger dilepaskannya histamin and leukotrien.

Other cells (eosnofil) were found in the airways of asthma deliver other materials (also leukotrien), also causes constriction of airways. “The exact cause of asthma is not yet known, there are many who think that the following factors may cause asthma or asthma risk factors:
* The trend of allergic
* Family History of asthma
* Respiratory infection in early childhood
* Allergies and air virus infection in early childhood, when immune system is developing
* Exposure to cigarette smoke
* Obesity

Asthma Sufferers Can Still Exercise | dry cough causes

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What is Asthma? What Causes Asthma?

Asthma is a disease affecting the airways that carry air to and from your lungs. People who suffer from this chronic condition (long-lasting or recurrent) are said to be asthmatic.

The inside walls of an asthmatic’s airways are swollen or inflamed. This swelling or inflammation makes the airways extremely sensitive to irritations and increases your susceptibility to an allergic reaction.

As inflammation causes the airways to become narrower, less air can pass through them, both to and from the lungs. Symptoms of the narrowing include wheezing (a hissing sound while breathing), chest tightness, breathing problems, and coughing. Asthmatics usually experience these symptoms most frequently during the night and the early morning.

For information on the different causes of asthma (allergy, colds, stress, exercise, etc) please see page 4 (causes of asthma).

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Asthma is Incurable

Asthma is an incurable illness. However, with good treatment and management there is no reason why a person with asthma cannot live a normal and active life.

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What is an Asthma Episode / Attack?

An asthma episode, or an asthma attack, is when symptoms are worse than usual. They can come on suddenly and can be mild, moderate or severe.

What happens during an asthma attack?

• The muscles around your airways tighten up, narrowing the airway.


• Less air is able to flow through the airway.


• Inflammation of the airways increases, further narrowing the airway.


• More mucus is produced in the airways, undermining the flow of air even more.

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Asthma Attacks Vary

In some asthma attacks, the airways are blocked such that oxygen fails to enter the lungs. This also prevents oxygen from entering the blood stream and traveling to the body’s vital organs. Asthma attacks of this type can be fatal, and the patient may require urgent hospitalization.

Asthma attacks can be mild, moderate, severe and very severe. At onset, an asthma attack does allow enough air to get into the lungs, but it does not let the carbon dioxide leave the lungs at a fast enough rate. Carbon dioxide – poisonous if not expelled – can build up in the lungs during a prolonged attack, lowering the amount of oxygen getting into your bloodstream.

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See Your Doctor

If you suffer from asthma you should see your doctor. He/she will help you find out what triggers your asthma symptoms and how to avoid them. You will also be prescribed medications which will help you manage your asthma.

With experience you will learn to keep away from things that irritate your airways, know when to take your medication, and better control your asthma. Effective asthma control allows you to take part in normal everyday activities.

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Consequences of Not Controlling Your Asthma

If you don’t control your asthma you will miss school or work more often and you will be less likely to be able to take part in some activities you enjoy. In the USA and Western Europe, asthma is one of the leading causes of school absenteeism.

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Menstrual Cycle Affects Asthma Severity

A woman’s respiratory symptoms, including those of asthma, tend to worsen between day 10 to 22 of her menstrual cycle, researchers from Haukeland University Hospital in Bergen, Norway, found. They reported their findings in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine (November 2012 issue).

The authors added that wheezing symptom severity dipped during ovulation (days 14 to 16). Patients with asthma, regular smokers and those with a BMI (body mass index) of more than 23 tend to experience more coughs immediately after ovulation.

Head researcher, Ferenc Macsali, MD, said “The effects of the menstrual cycle on respiratory symptoms in the general population have not been well studied. In a cohort of nearly 4,000 women, we found large and consistent changes in respiratory symptoms according to menstrual cycle phase, and, in addition, these patterns varied according to body mass index, asthma, and smoking status.”

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What is Asthma – Video

A video that explains what asthma is and the medications available to help relieve it. (by Altana Pharma)