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• Summary
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• Diagnosis and Tests
• Prevention and Risk Factors
• Treatments and Therapies

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Summary

Bronchitis is an inflammation of the bronchial tubes, the airways that carry air to your lungs. It causes a cough that often brings up mucus. It can also cause shortness of breath, wheezing, a low fever, and chest tightness. There are two main types of bronchitis: acute and chronic.

Most cases of acute bronchitis get better within several days. But your cough can last for several weeks after the infection is gone.

The same viruses that cause colds and the flu often cause acute bronchitis. These viruses spread through the air when people cough, or though physical contact (for example, on unwashed hands). Being exposed to tobacco smoke, air pollution, dusts, vapors, and fumes can also cause acute bronchitis. Less often, bacteria can also cause acute bronchitis.

To diagnose acute bronchitis, your health care provider will ask about your symptoms and listen to your breathing. You may also have other tests.

Treatments include rest, fluids, and aspirin (for adults) or acetaminophen to treat fever. A humidifier or steam can also help. You may need inhaled medicine to open your airways if you are wheezing. Antibiotics won't help if the cause is viral. You may get antibiotics if the cause is bacterial.

NIH: National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute

Start Here

• Acute Bronchitis (American Academy of Family Physicians) Also in Spanish
• Acute Bronchitis (American Lung Association)
• Bronchitis (National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute) Also in Spanish
• Chest Cold (Acute Bronchitis) Basics (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Diagnosis and Tests

• Arterial Blood Gas (ABG) Test (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
• Tests for Lung Disease (National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute) Also in Spanish

Prevention and Risk Factors

• Is Acute Bronchitis Contagious? (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish

Treatments and Therapies

• Bronchitis Symptoms, Diagnosis, and Treatment (American Lung Association)

Related Issues

• Cough Culprits: What's the Difference Between Bronchitis and Pneumonia? (National Institutes of Health) Also in Spanish

Clinical Trials

• ClinicalTrials.gov: Bronchiolitis (National Institutes of Health)
• ClinicalTrials.gov: Bronchitis (National Institutes of Health)

Journal Articles References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

• Article: Clinical presentations and diagnostic approaches of pediatric necrotizing tracheobronchitis with influenza...
• Article: Distinct clinical characteristics of bocavirus and Mycoplasma pneumoniae infection in children...
• Article: Clinical features of plastic bronchitis in children after congenital heart surgery.
• Acute Bronchitis -- see more articles

Reference Desk

• Bronchi, Bronchial Tree, and Lungs (National Cancer Institute)
• How the Lungs Work (National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute) Also in Spanish

Find an Expert

• American Lung Association
• National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute

Children

• Bronchitis (For Parents) (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
• Plastic Bronchitis (For Parents) (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish

Patient Handouts

• Acute bronchitis (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Postural drainage (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Sputum culture (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish