Respiratory Infections in Adults

Respiratory Infections

WHAT ARE RESPIRATORY INFECTIONS.
A. These are infections of any part of the respiratory tract or system. This system includes the nose, throat, sinuses, larynx, the main windpipe (trachea), it's subsequent smaller branches (bronchi and bronchioles), and the lungs themselves. Infections of these different parts, therefore, include the common cold, sinusitis, throat infections, laryngitis, tracheitis, bronchitis, bronchiolitis and pneumonia. The outerskin of the lung, or pleura, may also be infected producing the painful condition pleurisy.
Most respiratory infections are often simply called `chest infections' and can be caused by over 200 different types of organisms such as bacteria, viruses and even fungi.
Chest infections are very common especially in the winter months, and can affect all age groups. The elderly and premature babies are particularly at risk, because of their lowered resistance and increased susceptability to infections. Elderly people who become confined to bed through a long term illness, are at increased risk of developing pneumonia, which may in some cases prove fatal. Q. How does chronic bronchitis differ from acute bronchitis?
A. Basically acute bronchitis is an infection of the air tubes or bronchi, which is usually easily cured by a course of antibiotics. Chronic bronchitis is a condition that has been present for a long time, and results from damage to the walls of the air tubes over many years. The commonest cause of such damage is cigarette smoking.
The damaged walls in chronic bronchitis produce large amounts of mucous or sputum, which can be very difficult to cough up. The patient easily gets short of breath, because the air tubes lose their elasticity and become narrower, making it difficult for air to pass freely in and out of the lungs. Alongwith chronic bronchitis there is often damage to the lung tissue, called emphysema. This makes breathing even more difficult, and unfortunately once these `twin' conditions are present, they cannot be cured, but breathing can be eased with inhalers and drugs to open up the airways.
If the patient continues to smoke, they will deteriorate further, eventually becoming a `respiratory cripple' being unable to dress or even shave without gasping for breath or having to use oxygen from a cylinder twenty four hours a day.
An attack of acute bronchitis on top of chronic bronchitis can be a serious complication in some sufferers.

Q. Tuberculosis and pneumonia don't seem to be so common these days, why is this?
A. There are several reasons for this. With regard to Tuberculosis, the successful immunisation campaign of most children in the western world has helped to drastically reduce the prevalence of this disease.
However, TB recently seems to be on the increase in certain parts of the world. Obviously in third world countries, where immunisation programmes are not as widespread, the condition is more common but what is worrying health experts is that the organism which causes TB, seems to be developing resistance to the present drugs used to treat the disease. Increasing numbers of people with AIDS are also developing tuberculosis, because they have no resistance to the disease because of their defective immune systems.
Pneumonia is not so common these days because of the very effective antibiotics that are now available, but again AIDS patients are very susceptable to pneumonia, because of their impaired immunity.
IMPORTANT NOTICE : This content is from the Dr Chris Steele personal archive and is provided for convenience only. Information contained here may no longer agree with the most up to date medical advice. Please check with a medical professional before taking any action.

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