170 Where There Is No Doctor 2011
BRONCHITIS
Bronchitis is an infection of the bronchi or tubes that carry air to the lungs.
It causes a noisy cough, often with mucus or phlegm. Bronchitis is usually
caused by a virus, so antibiotics do not generally help. Use antibiotics only if
the bronchitis lasts more than a week and is not getting better, if the person
shows signs of pneumonia (see the following page), or if he already has a
chronic lung problem.
CHRONIC BRONCHITIS
Signs:
• A cough, with mucus that lasts for months or years.
Sometimes the cough gets worse, and there may be
fever. A person who has this kind of cough, but does
not have another long term illness such as tuberculosis
or asthma, probably has chronic bronchitis.
‘barrel
chest’
• It occurs most frequently in older persons who have
been heavy smokers.
• It can lead to emphysema, a very serious and
incurable condition in which the tiny air pockets of the
lungs break down. A person with emphysema has a
hard time breathing, especially with exercise, and his
chest becomes big ‘like a barrel’.
Treatment:
♦ Stop smoking.
Emphysema can result
from chronic asthma,
chronic bronchitis, or
smoking.
♦ Take an anti-asthma medicine with salbutamol (p. 384).
♦ Persons with chronic bronchitis should use cotrimoxazole or amoxicillin every time
they have a cold or ‘flu’ with a fever.
♦ If the person has trouble coughing up sticky phlegm, have him breathe hot water
vapors (p. 168) and then help him with postural drainage (see p. 169).
If you have a chronic cough
(or want to prevent one),
DO NOT SMOKE!