What Causes Acute Bronchitis
Acute bronchitis is usually caused by a viral infection. This is most often the same viruses that cause colds and the flu. It may also be caused by a bacterial infection, or by physical or chemical agents that are breathed in. These may include dusts, allergens, and strong fumes, including those from chemical cleaning compounds or tobacco smoke.
Acute bronchitis may come after a common cold or other viral infections in the upper respiratory tract. It may also occur in people with chronic sinusitis, allergies, or those with enlarged tonsils and adenoids. It can be serious in people with lung or heart diseases. Pneumonia is a complication that can follow bronchitis.
Doctor’s Notes On Bacterial Pneumonia
Bacterial pneumonia is inflammation of the lung tissue caused by a bacterial infection. A number of different kinds of bacteria can cause pneumonia. Streptococcus pneumoniae is the most common cause of bacterial pneumonia. Other bacteria that can cause pneumonia include Mycoplasma pneumoniae, Legionella pneumophila, and Chlamydia pneumoniae. Pneumonia may affect one or both lungs and can involve any part of the lung or the entire lung.
Pneumonia often begins with symptoms of an upper respiratory infection, like sore throat and nasal congestion or runny nose. Associated symptoms may include fever, chills, cough, chest pain, and shortness of breath. The cough usually produces thick sputum. Other possible symptoms of pneumonia are muscle aches, headache, weakness, and fatigue.
Stop The Sniffles And Ease Your Dogs Runny Nose
Start with diagnosing the underlying causes of nasal discharge. There may be something lodged in your dogs nostril, he or might be suffering from a bacterial or viral infection, or he may simply have seasonal allergies. There may also be more serious causes affecting your dogs health.
Knowing when to go to the vet and when to treat at home can make all the difference. Some minor issues, such as seasonal allergies, can be treated at home while other times youll need to visit a professional. Now that you understand what to watch out for, you can make an informed decision the next time your pup has a runny nose.
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What Are The Symptoms Acute Bronchitis
The following are the most common symptoms of acute bronchitis. However, each person may experience symptoms differently. Symptoms may include:
- Back and muscle pain
- Watery eyes
- Wheezing
The symptoms of acute bronchitis may look like other conditions or medical problems. Talk with a healthcare provider for a diagnosis.
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Remember: never use topical medication treatments made for humans on your pup! Including, but not limited to: peroxide, rubbing alcohol, Neosporin, or baby oil.
Keep up with cleaning Dirty food and water dishes, toys, blankets, and bones arent only natural irritants, they can also cause reinfection.
Quarantine if needed We dont want any more sick pups out there!
In case of nosebleeds Always report any nosebleeds to your vet and ask when you can bring your dog in for an exam.
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Seasonal Allergies Or Flu Or Coronavirus Infection How To Tell The Difference
Seasonal allergies, COVID-19 and the flu share some characteristics, making it difficult for many to know the difference – such as a cough, runny nose, sneezing, etc. But there are also a few different features that can help you determine the difference between these conditions.
Common symptoms of allergies are:
- Sneezing
Department of Health and Social Care
Common symptoms of COVID-19 are:
- Fever
- Cough
- Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
As per the World Health Organization , less common symptoms include runny nose, sore throat, aches and pain, diarrhoea, etc. A recent study published in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine showed that people infected with COVID-19 take five days on average to show symptoms.
Check out the chart below to help you find out the difference between these conditions.
Some differences that may help distinguish seasonal allergies, flu and coronavirus infection from one another
- Allergy symptoms occur regularly and are usually mild
- Seasonal allergies cannot cause a fever, and are not contagious
- Symptoms of cold and mild flu usually resolve themselves
- Most people recover from flu in less than two weeks, although some people develop complications, including pneumonia
- COVI-19 is extremely contagious and spreads easily between people through direct via respiratory droplets from infected patients
- Coronavirus can cause a fever
How Is Walking Pneumonia Diagnosed
Walking pneumonia is usually diagnosed through a physical examination. The doctor will check your child’s breathing and listen for a hallmark crackling sound that often indicates walking pneumonia.
If needed, a chest X-ray or tests of mucus samples from the throat or nose might be done to confirm the diagnosis.
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What Are The Complications Of Laryngitis
If the cause of laryngitis is vocal cord paralysis, the swallowing mechanism may also be affected, and food particles may enter the larynx and lungs, leading to coughing. This process can also lead to aspiration pneumonia and its accompanying symptoms when the food is aspirated deep into the lungs and causes irritation and inflammation of lung tissue.
Repeated episodes of gastroesophageal reflux may cause small amounts of acid to get past the inflamed larynx and enter the lung, causing recurrent pneumonia or bronchitis.
Prior to the advent of Haemophilusinfluenzae immunization, epiglottitis due to H. flu was always considered as a possible alternative diagnosis for children with croup. This was a life-threatening medical emergency because the epiglottis could massively swell, blocking air from entering the larynx and lungs. X-rays of the neck were taken to visualize the epiglottis and look for swelling. The diagnosis was often confirmed in the operating room where the otolaryngologist and anesthesiologist would use laryngoscopy to look at the epiglottis and vocal cords and decide whether to insert a breathing tube in the child’s airway to prevent the airway from swelling shut. Fortunately, because of immunization, this disease is rarely seen.
How Does Laryngitis Last
Laryngitis is self-limiting and should last for only a few days, and symptoms should resolve within 7 days, but can linger up to two weeks. If symptoms persist longer than three weeks, this is considered chronic laryngitis and causes other than a viral infection need to be explored. Croup is often described as a disease of the nighttime because visits to the emergency department peak after midnight with sick infants and children.
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Treat Calf Pneumonia Early
Pneumonia can affect calves of any age. Most of the pathogens that cause lung infections are always present in the calfs respiratory tract and become a problem only when his immune defenses are compromised by stress. Stress may be due to bad weather, extreme changes in temperature, a long truck haul, overcrowding in a dirty environment, or nutritional stress due to deficiencies of an important mineral like copper or selenium. A newborn calf in a drafty or humid barn may get pneumonia.
A primary viral pneumonia may be mild, but secondary bacterial invaders may move in after tissues are damaged by a virus. For instance, a viral infection often destroys the tiny cilia on the lining of the windpipe and bronchi, so foreign material can no longer be moved up out of the airways.
Bacterial pneumonia is generally more apt to kill the calf than is viral infection. Viral pneumonia may be insignificant and run its course without treatment unless a secondary bacterial infection turns it into an outbreak of pneumonia that may go through a group of calves.
Young calves are most susceptible to pneumonia after their temporary immunity begins to wane. Calves that do not get colostrum or not enough have less defense against pathogens. Calves stressed by a hard birth or calves that become chilled immediately after birth may not get up and nurse soon enough, or cant absorb enough maternal antibodies due to stress .
Are You Having Trouble Breathing Or Shorter Of Breath With Usual Activities
This is the red flag to seek medical advice. You can ride out a fever, body aches, headaches, runny nose but if you trouble breathing, this can become an emergency very quickly.
The flu usually doesnt cause shortness of breath right away unless that dreaded double pneumonia develops. With COVID-19 is so dangerous because you can have shortness of breath/difficulty breathing rapidly and early in the illness BEFORE you get a full pneumonia while with the flu, the pneumonia CAUSES the shortness of breath and is more predictable and slower. Even ER doctors have trouble sorting this out, but I will help you by walking you through how I think of it when someone calls me, or I do a house call. In medicine, I was trained as a specialist and my first motto is to do no harm second is work as hard as you can to be right on with diagnosis and treatment but dont make a mistake third is to plan for the worst hope for the best. If something bad is going on you want to be prepared, be ahead of a bad viral infection of any kind, and not miss an opportunity to fix the problem early or prevent a late complication.
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Types Of Walking Pneumonia
Walking pneumonia is one of more than 30 different types of pneumonia. It can be divided into a few different subtypes, including:
Mycoplasma pneumonia
This type of pneumonia tends to be mild, and most people recover without treatment. Its caused by the bacterium Mycoplasma pneumoniae . The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that there are about of M. pneumoniae infections each year in the United States.
Chlamydial pneumonia
This type of walking pneumonia is caused by Chlamydia pneumoniae bacteria. While it can cause a serious infection, most people experience only mild illness or no symptoms whatsoever. Its common among school-age children and young adults.
Legionella pneumonia
Legionnaires disease is one of the most serious types of walking pneumonia, as it can lead to both respiratory failure and death. Its caused by Legionella, a type of bacteria found in freshwater that can contaminate water systems in buildings. People can get this disease if they inhale airborne droplets of water that contain the bacteria.
Walking pneumonia symptoms are typically mild and look like the common cold. People may start noticing signs of walking pneumonia between 1 and 4 weeks of being exposed to the pathogen that caused the disease.
Symptoms of walking pneumonia can include:
- vomiting
- loss of appetite
What Other Symptoms May Come With A Runny Nose
Postnasal drip is a side effect of too much mucus. It occurs when the mucus goes down the back of your throat and is swallowed, which may lead to a cough or sore throat.
Sometimes, a runny nose and a congested, or stuffy, nose are seen together. Congestion occurs when the tissues lining the nose become swollen and make it difficult to breathe. The swelling is due to inflamed blood vessels. Mucus may begin to run out of your nose.
A runny nose due to a cold or flu may be accompanied by fatigue, sore throat, cough, facial pressure and sometimes fever.
A runny nose due to allergies may be accompanied by sneezing and itchy, watery eyes.
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Cleft Palates Cleft Lips Or Oronasal Fistulas
If you notice your dog has a runny nose or unusual discharge specifically after meals, this may be due to a cleft palate/lip or an oronasal fistula. A cleft palate or lip is a congenital abnormality that causes two sides of your dogs palate not to fuse, while an oronasal fistula usually happens due to oral infections or the loss of a tooth.
Both conditions can lead to chronic nasal infections and are most commonly treated with surgery.
How Do You Catch Walking Pneumonia
Walking pneumonia is often caused by bacteria or viruses. Most commonly a bacteria called mycoplasma pneumoniae is responsible for the infection. The infection is often caused by inhaling airborne droplets of water that are contaminated with the bacteria or virus when an infected person coughs or sneezes. These bacteria and viruses then infect your nose, throat, windpipe and lungs.
Thats why children and younger adults develop it most often the infection spreads easily in crowded environments like schools and college dormitories. But walking pneumonia can also hit nursing homes.
Youll usually start feeling symptoms within two weeks of exposure, but the bacteria can incubate for up to a month and youre contagious during that incubation period. Over about four days, the symptoms gradually worsen and include:
- Fatigue.
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What Are The Symptoms Of A Common Cold
The common cold is a simple illness that typically is not a serious infection. Its little more than a nuisance unless, of course, you’re the one with the cold symptoms.
“Colds are caused by viruses, and the most common virus that causes the cold is rhinovirus,” says Aaron M. Milstone, MD, assistant professor of pediatric infectious diseases at Johns Hopkins Children’s Center in Baltimore.
While a common cold is no fun to deal with, it is not as dangerous as the influenza virus, which can spread to other people more quickly, and even kill, adds Dr. Milstone. There are also far fewer hospitalizations associated with the common cold than with the flu, he adds.
The symptoms of the common cold often include:
- Some muscle aches and headaches
- Low or no fever
Generally, says Milstone, people feel bad and a little run down for a couple of days, then start to perk up as the cold runs its course.
A good way to tell whether you have the common cold or the flu is by how quickly the symptoms appear. Symptoms of the common cold take their time. Flu symptoms, on the other hand, hit fast.
Canine Influenza Colds And Respiratory Infections
Just like humans, dogs are prone to viral and bacterial infections that can cause all kinds of runny noses. And since canine influenza and other viral respiratory diseases have no cure, they need to be treated by a vet ASAP to prevent spreading disease.
Most respiratory infections are mild and relatively easy to deal with, but others can cause more serious complications if left unchecked.
Keep your pup as comfortable as you can and away from other animals while theyre recovering from an infection. Some dogs may need fluids, meds, antibiotics, and sometimes non-steroidal anti-inflammatory treatment. You can also ask your vet for a nutrition plan to help with recovery.
And remember: always use dog-safe disinfectant solutions to clean your home and avoid reinfections!
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When To Go To The Vet And When To Treat At Home
Some of the causes of runny nose including seasonal allergies can be treated at home. Other serious conditions require a veterinarian. Heres a quick breakdown of what you can do at home.
In general, if your dog has a mild runny nose with clear nasal discharge, you can treat symptoms at home. If your pups runny nose is caused by seasonal allergies, try making a few lifestyle changes to reduce exposure to allergens. Take walks midday to avoid high pollen counts in the mornings and evenings. If your dog is allergic to grass, walk on dirt or paved paths, head to the beach, and avoid the dog park. If your dog is allergic to dust or grass, you can also opt to run and play on artificial turf fields.
Use pet wipes to remove irritants from your pets fur and use air filters inside your home to remove potential allergens like fragrances. You can also give your dog an antihistamine or an allergy relief chew to help. Immune support chews can also help support a healthy immune system and help with seasonal allergies.
For dogs who suffer from food allergies, try a limited ingredient diet . These diets remove the most common food allergens, including chicken, beef, and dairy. You can slowly reintroduce foods one at a time to see which ingredients are the culprits. Avoid brands that claim to sell hypoallergenic dog foods. Dogs, like humans, can theoretically be allergic to anything so there is no truly hypoallergenic food.
What Are The Symptoms Of Pneumonia
Symptoms of pneumonia can vary. They may resemble common cold and flu symptoms, including fever, difficulty breathing, chest pain, and coughing up phlegm or mucus.
Symptoms of pneumonia can be mild or severe. Its easy to mistake pneumonia as a stubborn cold or flu that wont go away. Its incredibly important, however, to catch pneumonia early on to prevent serious complications.
Talk to a doctor if you have difficulty breathing, you have a persistent fever, or if you have symptoms that do not get better after a few days.
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When Should I Contact A Healthcare Provider To Treat A Runny Nose
A runny nose will typically go away on its own. However, a healthcare provider should be contacted if:
- The symptoms continue for more than 10 days and there is no improvement.
- Symptoms are severe or unusual.
- Drainage from your young childs nose comes from only one side and is green, bloody or foul-smelling, or if you have other reason to believe there may be a foreign object stuck in their nose.
Your healthcare provider will perform a physical examination to make sure the runny nose is not a symptom of a more serious condition.
Have You Got A Cold Or Covid Heres How To Tell The Difference
In pre-pandemic days, if you got a sniffle and a headache, you might dismiss it as an ordinary cold and carry on as normal, even if you felt a little rough around the edges. But during cold and flu season, how can you be sure its a cold and not Covid-19?
The bottom line is without a test, you cant. Because while the typical symptoms of a cold are a headache, sore throat and runny nose, those are now some of the primary indicators of Covid too.
On Thursday, 23 December, researchers behind the ZOE Covid study warned that those with a sore throat, runny nose and a headache all symptoms of a common cold likely have the Omicron variant.
With Omicron cases spreading rapidly, Professor Tim Spector, who helped found the Covid ZOE app, told the BBC that anyone with these symptoms should take a Covid test. More than 106,000 people tested positive for the virus in the 24 hours to 22 December, while the weekly average has increased by 58.9 per cent.
The number of new symptomatic cases has exploded over the last week, Professor Tim Spector, who helped found the Covid ZOE app said.
For most people, an Omicron positive case will feel much more like the common cold, starting with a sore throat, runny nose and a headache.
He added: You only need to ask a friend who has recently tested positive to find this out. We need to change public messaging urgently to save lives.
The common cold is caused by a different strain of virus to Covid, however.
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