Is Acute Bronchitis contagious? Learn About The Symptoms, Treatment Of Acute Bronchitis Today

What is Acute Bronchitis

Acute Bronchitis is simply the result of the inflammation of the bronchial tubes that carries air to the lungs. The bronchi are the airway charged with the to and fro of air to the lungs.The bronchi are branched into 2 places which are the right & left bronchi. So now coming back to the bronchial tubes, they are simply the pathway of air into and out of the lungs. Acute bronchitis is a medical condition which occurs when the bronchial tubes have been inflamed; inflamed in the sense that the pathway carrying air has been blocked by the build up of mucus.

The most common symptom of acute bronchitis is persistent coughing, chest pain, wheezing, and mild fever. 

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Acute bronchitis is a common disease among adults, it is caused by viral infection. Unlike chronic bronchitis, acute bronchitis is mild in nature, the persistent coughing doesn't last more than 2 weeks and the symptoms are mild, unlike its other counterpart. Acute bronchitis is commonly found among asthma patients as these are the symptoms asthma patients also exhibits.

Is Acute Bronchitis Contagious?

This is a common question most people that have come in contact with acute bronchitis ask. Well for your information, the disease is contagious as it is caused by a virus. Although chronic bronchitis is not contagious, you still need to be careful when you're around persons with the disease. It is not always easy detecting bronchitis as it is commonly likened to ordinarily cold as they possess similar symptoms. But when you notice that a cough is persistent even when other symptoms have been suppressed, I think you should ask your doctor to carry out a medical check up on you.

Mode Of Transmission

Acute bronchitis is transmitted through the air as it is an airborne disease. It can be transferred from one person to another when a patient suffering from acute bronchitis sneezes, cough, etc. You can also contact the disease when you come in contact with the body fluids of an infected person. Acute bronchitis can also be caused by some bacteria species which include: Mycoplasma pneumonia, Streptococcus species, Chlamydia pneumonia, Bordetella pertussis etc.

Common Acute Bronchitis Symptoms You Need To Know

The incubation period acute bronchitis is between 2-7 days and you start to notice some feelings before the real symptoms start to surface. These symptoms are a sore throat, weakness and nauseous. But the common symptoms of acute bronchitis are:

• Sore throat
• Wheezing
• Chest pain
• Chills
• Nauseous
• Difficulty in breathing

Diagnosing Acute Bronchitis 

Normally, acute bronchitis usually goes without treating it. You need to tell your physician to carry out an examination on you. The basic tests are chest x-ray scan, blood test.

Chest ray test: This test is compulsory so as to check your respiratory and heart rate. while a blood test is necessary so as to point out inflammation which is indicated by an elevated c-reaction protein. When your doctor is carrying out a test on you, here are come common questions you'll likely to be asked.

1. How often do you cough?
2. Do you have difficulty in breathing?
3. Also, you'll be asked if you usually cough/spit out mucus?

These questions will enable your doctor to ascertain the type of bronchitis you're suffering from.

Basic Acute Bronchitis Treatment

In most cases, acute bronchitis doesn't usually treatment before it goes by itself. But if acute bronchitis you're suffering from is caused by a virus, then a medication is required. Most times your doctor may recommend you to take antibiotics if your acute bronchitis is bacterial in nature. There are several other homemade medications out there that have been proven to be effective in curing the disease. These medications include ginger(Zingiber officinale) drink, coffee, and so many others.

Other treatments which you can adopt to treat your acute bronchitis include:

OTC: OTC simply means over-the-counter, this is a nonsteroidal drug that possesses anti-inflammatory properties. It can be used to clear off the mucus and also soothe your sore throat. An example of this drug is naproxen.

Also making use of humidifiers is also a good step to control your acute bronchitis. Humidifiers basically function in moisturizing the air we breathe in thus clearing off the mucus which may be in the bronchial tubes.

Increase your liquid(water) intake: Once we take in water, we notice that we've cleared off some mucus hanging in the throat and nasal cavity by swallowing them. Or we could also expel the mucus by coughing and vomiting.

Acute Bronchitis Home Remedies

Below are some effective home remedies that should adopt in order to cure your bronchitis.

Ginger: As I've mentioned above, ginger is very important in treating acute bronchitis because of its anti-inflammatory properties which are very useful in treating inflamed bronchial tubes.

• To make a ginger juice, add ginger, cloves and a teaspoon of cinnamon in a bowl filled with hot water. 
• Then stir the mixture well and wait for it to cool a little bit before drinking it. You can repeat the step for a few days to get fast relief.

Garlic: Garlic also has anti-inflammatory properties. So it's a useful homemade remedy for bronchitis also. To achieve this:

1. Peel some ginger cloves
2. Place them in a boiled glass of milk.
3. Take this mixture every night during bed times for fast relief.

Honey: Honey has antibacterial and antiviral properties.

• Simply put a teaspoon of honey in your coffee for a fast relief of acute bronchitis.

Drinking salt water: Drinking salt water several times daily has been proven effective in solving acute bronchitis. All you need do is to follow the steps below:

1. Add a full spoon of salt into a warm water(cup).
2. Stir the mixture very well.

Note: Don't add too many salts to the solution so as to avoid burning sensation in your throat. Just add the recommended amount to the cup of water.

Eucalyptus oil: Eucalyptus oil has antibacterial properties which have been proven by medical experts that it actually works for bronchitis.

1. Add some few drops to a bowl filled with hot water. Then place your head(place a tower on your head) over the bowl in order for you to inhale the steam that is escaping. 
2. You can also apply it to your chest so as to expel the mucus there.

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