All over the world, a lot of people are diagnosed with respiratory diseases as caused by smoking, inhaling fumes or acquiring bacterial infection. There are two kinds of bronchitis: acute and chronic. Acute bronchitis is typically caused by bacterial infections or viruses that is responsible for swelling and inflammation of the bronchial tubes. Nowadays, some doctors subscribe to the fact that fungus are more responsible for causing this disease rather than bacterial infection. As a result, the airways are obstructed making it difficult for a person to breathe. If there’s one positive thing about acute bronchitis,treatment is possible unlike chronic bronchitis which is irreversible. Plus, acute bronchitis occurs for a short period depending on the early detection that leads to effective treatment. Most of the time, it can end in a few weeks time while chronic bronchitis lasts for months or even years.

Acute bronchitis can easily affect an individual with a weaker immune system who inhales the air that contains fungus, virus or bacteria. You are likely to be infected after touching the hands of people who cough a lot. There is a higher incidence if you reside in areas near factories, prolonged inhalation of the smoke can cause acute bronchitis. For obvious reasons, smoking is a major culprit in most respiratory diseases. According to familydoctor website, individuals who have gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) can likely develop acute bronchitis when stomach acids reach the bronchial tree.

Several symptoms of acute bronchitis are coughing, wheezing, slight fever, chest pain, and difficulty in breathing. Coughing is the body’s way to expel mucus so it’s good to have productive cough to get rid of phlegm. Nevertheless, too much coughing can result to chest pain and wheezing. In some instances,dyspnea or difficulty in breathing is experienced after physical exertion. A health professional begins the consultation by asking about your medical background. Your recent bouts with flu or colds maybe necessary to recall.Later, certain laboratory tests like mucus and blood tests are needed. A chest x-ray and lung function tests can also aid the doctor in prescribing treatment. Usual treatment for acute bronchitis are cough medicines or inhalers to relieve breathing problems.