What is acute bronchitis? What is chronic bronchitis? What are their clinical manifestations?

What is acute bronchitis? What is chronic bronchitis? What are their clinical manifestations?

What is acute bronchitis? What is chronic bronchitis? What are their clinical manifestations?

1.Acute bronchitis
In the early stage of acute bronchitis, symptoms of upper respiratory tract infection often appear. Patients usually have clinical manifestations such as nasal congestion, runny nose, sore throat and hoarseness. The systemic symptoms are mild, but low fever, chills, weakness, itchiness in the throat, irritating cough and pain in the back of the chest. There is not much sputum in the early stage, but the sputum is not easy to cough up. After 2 to 3 days, the sputum can be changed from mucinous to mucopurulent. Patients with cold, inhalation of cold air or irritating gases can exacerbate coughing or induce coughing. Coughing is often more pronounced in the morning or at night. Cough can also be paroxysmal, sometimes persistent cough. When coughing is severe, it is often accompanied by nausea, vomiting, and chest and abdominal muscle pain. If accompanied by bronchospasm, there may be wheezing and shortness of breath. In general, the course of acute bronchitis has a certain degree of self-limiting, systemic symptoms can resolve within 4 to 5 days, but cough can sometimes be extended for several weeks.
A dry voice can sometimes be found in the examination, disappearing after coughing; a wet voice can be heard at the bottom of the lung, and a wheezing sound can be heard when there is bronchospasm. Usually, the white blood cell count is normal, and no abnormal findings are found on the chest X-ray examination.


2. Chronic bronchitis
Chronic bronchitis refers to the chronic cough and cough for more than three months per year for two consecutive years, except for other various causes of chronic cough. It is not necessarily accompanied by a persistent airflow limitation.

(1) The cough that repeatedly coughs and gradually worsens is a prominent manifestation of this disease. The mild ones only occur in the winter and spring seasons, especially before and after getting up in the morning, and there is less cough during the day. Cough reduces or disappears during summer and autumn. In severe cases, the cough in the four seasons, the winter and spring intensified, coughing day and night, especially in the morning and evening.

(2) Cough Generally, it is white foamy foamy, more in the morning, often because it is sticky and not easy to slip out. Symptoms rapidly increase after infection or cold, increased sputum, increased viscosity, or yellow purulent sputum or wheezing. Occasionally because of a cough and blood in the sputum.

(3) Asthma When combined with respiratory infection, due to congestion and edema of the bronchioles, sputum occlusion and bronchial stenosis, asthma (wheezing) symptoms can occur. The patient's throat wheezes while breathing, and there is a wheezing sound in the lungs during auscultation.

(4) Repeated infections In the cold season or when the temperature suddenly changes, repeated respiratory infections are likely to occur. At this time, the patient's asthma increased, the amount of sputum increased significantly and was purulent, accompanied by general malaise, chills, fever and so on. Wet sounds appear in the lungs, and blood leukocyte counts are increased. Repeated respiratory infections are particularly prone to worsening the condition of older patients and must be given full attention.

There are no special signs in the early stage of the disease, and a little wet or dry voice can be heard in the bottom of most patients. Sometimes it can temporarily disappear after coughing or coughing. Signs of emphysema can be found in long-term episodes.

The relationship between chronic bronchitis and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (slow obstructive pulmonary disease), emphysema, and bronchial asthma: chronic bronchitis is closely related to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and emphysema. Clinically, patients have symptoms such as cough and cough. At the time, the chronic obstructive pulmonary disease cannot be diagnosed immediately. If the patient has only the clinical manifestations of "chronic bronchitis" and "emphysema", and there is no persistent airflow limitation, then the chronic obstructive pulmonary disease cannot be diagnosed. The patient can only be diagnosed as "chronic bronchitis" and / or "Elder emphysema." However, a chronic obstructive pulmonary disease is diagnosed if the patient's lung function indicates a persistent airflow limitation. Some patients may also have chronic bronchitis and emphysema while suffering from bronchial asthma. If bronchial asthma patients are often exposed to irritating substances such as smoking, coughing and coughing can also occur, and coughing and coughing are an important feature of chronic bronchitis. Such patients can be diagnosed as "wheezing bronchitis."