Before treating bronchitis by means of antibiotics, exclude other health problems and make sure that the disease cause is bacteria. When airway inflammation is diagnosed, antibiotic therapy can help quickly get rid of the disease cause and symptoms.
Bronchitis therapy with antibiotics is aimed not only at getting rid of the disease symptoms, but also at killing the bacteria that caused it. There are two different types of bronchitis – acute and chronic, they can arise because of different pathogenic bacteria and the most common of them are as follows:
- Gram-negative bacteria – Moraxella catarrhalis, Haemophilus influenzae;
- Gram-positive bacteria – Streptococcus pneumoniae.
There is a big difference between bronchitis occurred because of a virus and bacterial bronchitis. Antibiotics for bronchitis treatment do not help the patient whose lower respiratory tract infection was caused by virus. Patients suffering from bacterial bronchitis can be treated at home by taking various capsules or pills that alleviate the illness symptoms, for example, coughing, wheezing and shortness of breath.
Chronic bronchitis is a serious disease in which the bronchi are in a state of constant irritation and inflammation. The patient with a long period of bronchial irritation may develop persistent cough in the morning, which is especially common in smokers.
In addition to treating bronchitis with antibiotics, patients are advised to stop smoking or reduce the number of cigarettes smoked per day.
Antibiotics for bronchitis treatment should be used only as directed and at recommended doses, which may depend on the patient’s age and the disease severity. If to use too low or high dose of antibiotic to treat bronchitis, then the drug may work not so well.
An individual approach to every patient is needed to decide the question on expediency of prescription of antibacterial means and the choice of rational antibiotic therapy. Indication for antibiotics use should be different clinical signs confirming that bronchitis has arisen because of bacteria, for example:
- presence of purulent sputum;
- shortness of breath;
- discomfort and chest pain;
- signs of intoxication.
Some drugs for dry cough can be used in the early stages of bronchitis and sinus infection. Antibiotics are not always required at the beginning of sinusitis therapy, but this can be the best solution as the symptoms worsen.
Zithromax is often prescribed to treat various bacterial infections, including bronchitis. Azithromycin is an active ingredient of this drug. Using it within a week, the disease symptoms are relieved.
Bacterial bronchitis is often diagnosed in children. The dose of antibiotics may vary, depending on the child’s age and weight.
It is a common practice to treat infectious diseases of the lower respiratory tract, such as bronchitis and pneumonia using antibiotics. Especially when bacterial disease is accompanied with bouts of coughing, nasal congestion and nasal discharge.
Many different researches have been aimed at studying the antibiotics effect on elderly people suffering from bronchitis. In this age group, timely antibiotic therapy is of particular importance, since there is a risk of serious complications.
There is no quick way to cure bronchitis, the patient needs to take antibiotics within several weeks before his health improves.
Efficacy and safety of many antibiotics for bronchitis treatment for adults have been proven. Sometimes adults suffering from lower respiratory tract infection may need the use of medications treating asthma that help open bronchial tubes and remove mucus and sputum from the respiratory system.
Bacterial diseases of the respiratory tract may also occur during pregnancy, including bronchitis. A doctor or pharmacist can help choose antibiotics that are effective for treating the disease and safe for the future child.