Asthmatic Bronchitis - Part One

Usually people think of the long term effects of the various COPD conditions on the lives of individuals, but recently I became acutely aware of the short term effects of one of these conditions, asthmatic bronchitis. After a recent cross country trip, my wife began to show symptoms of a head cold, the stuffy nose, watery eyes, cough, fever and chills. Initially we treated the condition as most people would who had a cold.

For a few days, she seemed to be holding her own, but the her condition worsened. She began to have difficulty breathing, wheezed with every breath and felt a general weakness throughout her body. At this point, we called our physician, and after several hours wait were able to get a prescription for an antibiotic and an inhaler. In the meantime, the temperature outside dropped, as a cold (more like frigid) front rolled in, and the temperature tumbled to 23 degress below zero at one point.

This temperature extreme took its toll on her condition, and while she did not worsen further, she did not imporve either. Finally, after almost 8 days of these symptoms, she began to improve, as the medication took effect and the temperature moderated. Now, she is on her way to recovery, but in the meantime, she has been miserable for several days.

While this may seem like an exaggerated description, this is the usual course for many people who are succeptible to asthmatic bronchitis. During the time they are in the acute phase of the condition, their condition is such that they do not feel like doing anything physical and the emotional stress of the physical symptoms impairs their ability to function intellectually as well. All that they want to do is rest.

Are there things which can be done to reduce the severity of these symptoms and speed their recovery? Can the course of this condition be altered so that the symptoms do not reach such disasterous proportions? In a word, Yes!

In Part 2 of this series, we'll look at what Asthmatic Bronchitis is and how it's effects can be lessened.

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