If you started to worry about a dry cough, which is giving away with severe pain in the chest, and pus is separated with abundant phlegm, there is a possibility that an acute tracheitis has developed, which the adult and the child need to treat from the first day of its manifestations. What factors can contribute to the onset of this disease, what is the danger of delay in the preparation of the course of therapy and what are the complications?
What is an acute tracheitis
Regardless of the form, this disease occurs due to inflammation of the trachea - the upper respiratory tract, which is the connecting area between the bronchi and the larynx. Part of it is located on the line of the sixth vertebra in the cervical region, and the rest goes down in the thoracic. Tracheitis is characterized by a strong edema of the mucous trachea, a cough and several other classic symptoms of inflammation. The acute period is simultaneously initial, and if you do not take care of timely treatment, it goes into a chronic form.
The acute inflammatory process has several nuances:
- It does not occur on an equal place: it is always preceded by other diseases of the respiratory tract, the general drop in immunity.
- The acute form always proceeds quickly, the prognosis of treatment, according to the doctors, is favorable, if the therapy is correctly selected, started in a timely manner. The duration of the acute period does not exceed 21 days.
- Tracheitis can be transferred at any age - it is diagnosed with the same frequency in an adult, elderly and small child.
Acute tracheitis is infectious
The person can not pass the inflammatory process, even if he is at an acute stage, but to be the peddler of the virus that accompanies this disease - yes. If you are not sure if allergic tracheitis has been exposed, or if it is bacterial / viral in nature, you should take care to protect others from being charged. This is especially important during the first 3 days after the onset of the acute phase. Try to keep out of contact with people and wear a medical mask.
Symptoms of
The clinical picture of tracheitis at the time of the acute stage varies with the development of the disease. The main sign of the acute condition of the patient is a strong cough, which is first followed by a mild perspiration, waves, the greatest intensity is in the morning or at night, so it interferes with sleep. If you inhale cold air, a person coughs up sharply.
Gradually, additional symptoms begin to appear:
- breathing becomes noisy;
- on the third day with cough sputum separated, in which the presence of pus is not excluded;
- subfebrile temperature is observed in the first 2 days of the acute stage;
- coughing attacks are accompanied by chest pain.
In children
Adults with acute and chronic tracheitis feel much worse than children, and risk getting more complications. In infants, the symptomatology of the disease can be the same - cough, pain in the chest, separation of sputum, but the temperature is often high, since the immunity is still weak. Treating tracheitis is also easier for them: the therapy will be effective, even if we only deal with strengthening the body and use methods of alternative medicine for local medicine.
Causes of
If the doctor diagnosed a tracheitis in acute form, or you found it yourself on the basis of characteristic symptoms, you can be sure that there is something else hidden behind this problem. Predominantly the development of tracheitis occurs against a background of viral infections, but the influence of some pathogenic bacteria is also possible. If the problem is in infectious diseases, then the pathogens are streptococcus or staphylococcus. This means that along with the tracheitis may be observed:
- pharyngitis;
- rhinitis;
- laryngitis;
- influenza.
If left untreated, or the therapeutic course is discontinued early, they can be complicated by inflammation of the upper respiratory tract. With regard to bacterial infections, the picture is the same: tracheitis in acute form will be a complication due to "incompleteness" and even may itself be a symptom of tuberculosis. However, doctors are sure that only the fact of neglected infection is not a serious prerequisite for the appearance of tracheitis. We need additional factors that play the role of catalysts. In most cases this is:
- abuse of nicotine, which changes the inner shell of the trachea;
- reduced immunity;
- heart and vascular disease;
- frequent inhalation of dry air, responsible for pathological changes in the laryngeal mucosa;
- presence of chronic inflammatory diseases affecting the upper respiratory tract;
- inflammatory processes occurring in the nasopharynx;
- general body hypothermia;
- prolonged and permanent poisoning with toxic air, leading to edema of the trachea.
Classification of
Doctors distinguish 3 types of tracheitis( whether acute or chronic), which are based on the causes that triggered the onset of the disease:
- is allergic - it is difficult to guess the provoking factor, with the disease not related.
- infectious - influenza, parainfluenza and other pathogens ARI, if left untreated, can result in acute pharyngitis, laryngitis and tracheitis.
- fungal is a rare species, the appearance of which is promoted by candidiasis, aspergillosis.
According to etiology, it is possible to separate tracheitis into:
- Primary - when only the trachea is affected, and the rest of the respiratory system is healthy. The acute form is almost not typical.
- Secondary - along with the trachea, the throat, nasal sinuses, bronchi, lungs, etc. can suffer.
Diagnosis
An accurate diagnosis will be made only on the basis of a patient's complaint collection, after which the ENT conducts a classic listening session with a phonendoscope and a laryngoscope. If there is a suspicion of acute rhinopharyngotracheitis or less complicated combinations of tracheitis with bronchitis / laryngitis / rhinitis, the following will be prescribed:
- bronchoscopy - consisting of examination of the trachea and other respiratory organs by the endoscope;
- chest X-ray;
- laboratory analysis of sputum.
Treatment of
Because of the impossibility of acute inflammation of the trachea without concomitant diseases, doctors insist on the need to treat the underlying cause, and with regard to tracheitis apply symptomatic therapy that involves stopping the inflammatory process. It is possible that it will be necessary to reduce the intensity of sputum excretion, especially at night and in the case when the tracheitis is accompanied by a painful cough.
Treatment of acute tracheitis necessarily involves not only internal medication, but also local therapy. Especially doctors insist on the need:
- inhalations nebulizer( if there is no temperature, steam inhalation is used);
- contrast rinsing( alternating antiseptic and soothing solutions);
- warming compresses on the chest( for infectious diseases affecting the lungs, they are made on the back);
- lubricating the larynx ring with antiseptics( if a purulent tracheitis develops).
Medication Therapy
Internal medication is focused not so much on eliminating the symptoms of tracheitis in an acute form, as to combat the cause of the development of this disease. What drugs are prescribed depends on the specific disease. Primarily, the doctors consider it advisable to use:
- Antiviral drugs - they are needed to eliminate the cause of tracheitis, so they drink 2 weeks. In order to treat respiratory viral infections, Arbidol, Anaferon, Kagocel, and Ingavirin are predominantly prescribed.
- Antipyretic - in the early days of the acute stage, if the disease occurs with a high temperature, you can use rectal suppositories( shown to adults and children),
- Immunomodulators - more for the overall strengthening of the body than to prevent the transition of the acute form to chronic. It is desirable to drink them a full course: within 3-4 weeks. You can use immunomodulators in the form of drops( Derinat).
In some cases, antibiotics are prescribed: if the disease is accompanied by the separation of purulent sputum, a strong chill, a temperature above 39 degrees. For such a situation, the therapy of acute inflammation of the trachea with the formation of pus replenishes with drugs of the penicillin line, but their patients are prescribed for 2-3 days, after which it is desirable to switch to less dangerous drugs.
To contribute to the elimination of key tracheitis symptoms will be:
- Expectorants - they are not recommended for those who suffer from a paroxysmal cough, and in the evening, as they provoke the separation of sputum.
- Antihistamines - make sense only for the treatment of an allergic form. Relieve inflammation, reduce swelling.
- Antitussive medications - are not used if pus accumulates in the trachea, as it should be excreted. Often, such medications are prescribed for evening reception, when due to acute coughing the patient can not sleep.
Folk treatment
Therapy by alternative medicine means a longer treatment, since the herbs do not give an immediate result, but at the initial stage of the acute phase it is a more reasonable choice than the pharmacy medicines. For a child, pediatricians also recommend using phytotherapy, because it is relatively safe. Mainly used here are:
- steam inhalations;
- rinsing;
- mustard plasters;
- decoctions of herbs inside.
If the tracheitis in acute form is accompanied by a persistent cough coming from the sternum, and during the breaths-exhalations behind the ribs noise is heard, doctors advise to make mustard plasters. The child is put not on the skin, but on the gauze attached to the chest to prevent a burn. Mixture for mustard - mustard powder and warm water, which are bred to the state of gruel. It is thickly laid out on parchment and the "compress" is determined on the chest. Keep mustard plaque for tracheitis should not be longer than 15 minutes, and do preferably in the evening. If mustard strongly bakes, you can use boiled and mashed potatoes.
In acute forms of inflammation of the trachea, the following methods also help:
- Make an oregano extract( 1 tsp for 200 ml of boiling water), drink 70 ml before eating.
- Boil 1 tsp.anise seeds in 250 ml of water, add 10 ml of cognac, 10 g of honey. Drink 1 tbsp.l.every half hour in the first 2 days of the acute stage of the disease.
- A simple folk remedy that helps not only with tracheitis, but also with diseases of the lungs and bronchi - a glass of boiled with 1 tsp.sage of milk. It is bred 1 tsp.honey and drink the mixture before bed. It is necessary to cook and use this remedy before full recovery.
Complications of
If the tracheitis is not allergic, in the absence of proper treatment it can gradually become chronic, and this phase is already followed:
- hypertrophy or atrophy of the mucosal trachea;
- pneumonia;
- development of the initial stage of tracheobronchitis;
- asthmatic attacks.
Prophylaxis of
The main measure of protection against tracheitis, doctors call the timely complete treatment of any infectious diseases, but there are several other important points:
- quit smoking;
- avoid hypothermia;
- strengthen immunity;
- try to maintain a normal home( 65-70%) humidity.