Acute bronchitis: answers to key questions.

The publication is devoted to the etiology and pharmacotherapy of acute bronchitis in adults. The authors obtained data on the etiology of the disease, indicating that in the clear majority of cases acute bronchitis is caused by various respiratory viruses (adenoviruses, influenza viruses and parainfluenza, and combinations of different viruses). The results of the study show that the starting prescription of antibacterial drugs for acute bronchitis is impractical, and the decision on their use should be based on objective data indicating the development of the bacterial process. A good tool for «distinguishing» a viral and bacterial infection is the quantitative determination of C-reactive protein in serum, the level of which is less than 20 mg/l, which is in favor of viral infection.

acute bronchitis, respiratory viruses, C-reactive protein