Acute bronchitis natural history

Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]; Associate Editor(s)-in-Chief: Seyedmahdi Pahlavani, M.D. [2]

Overview

Acute bronchitis is a self limited respiratory disease with an excellent prognosis which resolves within two weeks in majority of patients.

Natural History

If left untreated, acute bronchitis usually resolves within 2 weeks although it may last up to 2 months.^[1]^[2]

When bronchitis is prolonged, consider:

Mycoplasma pneumonia
Chlamydia pneumoniae
Bordetella pertussis. 13% to 32% of adolescents and adults with a cough lasting six days or more may have B. pertussis.^[3]^[4]

Also consider pneumonia and atypical pneumonia.

Complications

The most common complication of acute bronchitis is persistent cough that my last for 6 weeks.^[5] Rarely, in patients with immunosuppression or other debilitating disease, pneumonia occurs as a complication.^[6]

Prognosis

Prognosis is generally excellent and most of patients recover after 5-10 days.^[5] Recurrent episodes of acute bronchitis in subsequent years occur in 20% of patients.^[6]

References

↑ Gonzales R, Sande MA (2000). “Uncomplicated acute bronchitis”. Ann. Intern. Med. 133 (12): 981–91. PMID 11119400.
↑ Landau LI (2006). “Acute and chronic cough”. Paediatr Respir Rev. 7 Suppl 1: S64–7. doi:10.1016/j.prrv.2006.04.172. PMID 16798599.
↑ Hewlett EL, Edwards KM (2005). “Clinical practice. Pertussis–not just for kids”. N. Engl. J. Med. 352 (12): 1215–22. doi:10.1056/NEJMcp041025. PMID 15788498.
↑ Cornia PB, Lipsky BA, Saint S, Gonzales R (2007). “Clinical problem-solving. Nothing to cough at–a 73-year-old man presented to the emergency department with a 4-day history of nonproductive cough that worsened at night”. N. Engl. J. Med. 357 (14): 1432–7. doi:10.1056/NEJMcps062357. PMID 17914045.
↑ ^5.0 ^5.1 Wenzel RP, Fowler AA (2006). “Clinical practice. Acute bronchitis”. N. Engl. J. Med. 355 (20): 2125–30. doi:10.1056/NEJMcp061493. PMID 17108344.
↑ ^6.0 ^6.1 Albert RH (2010). “Diagnosis and treatment of acute bronchitis”. Am Fam Physician. 82 (11): 1345–50. PMID 21121518.

Template:WikiDoc Sources

[pmid11119400-1] Gonzales R, Sande MA (2000). “Uncomplicated acute bronchitis”. Ann. Intern. Med. 133 (12): 981–91. PMID 11119400.

[pmid16798599-2] Landau LI (2006). “Acute and chronic cough”. Paediatr Respir Rev. 7 Suppl 1: S64–7. doi:10.1016/j.prrv.2006.04.172. PMID 16798599.

[pmid15788498-3] Hewlett EL, Edwards KM (2005). “Clinical practice. Pertussis–not just for kids”. N. Engl. J. Med. 352 (12): 1215–22. doi:10.1056/NEJMcp041025. PMID 15788498.

[pmid17914045-4] Cornia PB, Lipsky BA, Saint S, Gonzales R (2007). “Clinical problem-solving. Nothing to cough at–a 73-year-old man presented to the emergency department with a 4-day history of nonproductive cough that worsened at night”. N. Engl. J. Med. 357 (14): 1432–7. doi:10.1056/NEJMcps062357. PMID 17914045.

[pmid17108344-5] 5.0 ^5.1 Wenzel RP, Fowler AA (2006). “Clinical practice. Acute bronchitis”. N. Engl. J. Med. 355 (20): 2125–30. doi:10.1056/NEJMcp061493. PMID 17108344.

[pmid21121518-6] 6.0 ^6.1 Albert RH (2010). “Diagnosis and treatment of acute bronchitis”. Am Fam Physician. 82 (11): 1345–50. PMID 21121518.

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