The bronchial tubes carry air into the tiny branches and smaller cells of the lungs. In bronchitis, the tubes become sore and you develop a deep cough. Bronchitis caused by bacteria can be treated with antibiotics, but there's no drug treatment for the more common kind caused by a virus. A bout of bronchitis may involve a couple of weeks of coughing (with no laughing allowed), weakness, and loss of energy and interest in doing things. Apart from that, bronchitis is rarely serious—at least if it doesn't progress to pneumonia.
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the WebThat meant anyone with bronchitis might be offered a kind of gelatinous hot toddy. Chris Baraniuk, Smithsonian Magazine, 6 Sep. 2022 Le Roy developed constrictive bronchitis after serving in Iraq, making breathing difficult. Chris Megerian, BostonGlobe.com, 10 Aug. 2022 Le Roy developed constrictive bronchitis after serving in Iraq, making breathing difficult. Chris Megerian, ajc, 10 Aug. 2022 These pollutants have been linked to health complications such as asthma, heart disease and chronic bronchitis. Rachel Ramirez, CNN, 6 July 2022 They can be used to treat asthma, but are more common for conditions like chronic bronchitis and emphysema. Korin Miller, SELF, 25 Jan. 2022 The common cold, the flu, bronchitis and asthma all very much continue to exist. Daniel Dale And Tara Subramaniam, CNN, 6 Jan. 2022 Earlier this year, Horner suffered from bronchitis, and UCI authorized him for cortisone treatment. Stephanie Vermillion, Outside Online, 22 Aug. 2014 Exposure is linked to several health problems, including asthma, heart disease, chronic bronchitis and other respiratory illnesses. Jen Christensen, CNN, 21 Apr. 2022 See More
Word History
Etymology
Late Latin bronchium "branch of a bronchus, bronchial tube" + -itis — more at bronchial
Note: The term bronchitis was apparently introduced into English by the British physician Charles Badham (1780-1845) in Observations on the Inflammatory Affections of the Mucous Membrane of the Bronchiæ (London: Callow, 1808), though the word had been used earlier (as a Latinate synonym of Luftröhrenästentzündung) by the German physician Johann Christian Stark (1753-1811) in Handbuch zur Kenntnis und Heilung innerer Krankheiten des menschlichen Körpers (Jena, 1799), pp. 144, 167.