Loading...
If one excludes pneumonia, acute lower respiratory tract infections (LRTIs) usually are viral in origin (often labeled as “viral bronchitis”). Patients with non-pneumonia LRTIs often receive oral corticosteroids, probably because their symptoms are like those seen in asthma exacerbations.
In this U.K. study, researchers evaluated 401 adults (mean age, 47; 17% smokers) with acute cough plus at least one of the following: sputum production, chest pain, wheezing, or shortness of breath. Patients with chronic lung disease or asthma were excluded. Patients who “required same-day antibiotics” also were excluded, which suggests that enrolled patients were presumed not to have pneumonia (although this was not explicitly stated in the study protocol)…