Allergic bronchitis refers to non infective, allergic inflammation of the lower respiratory
airways. The terms, allergic bronchitis and asthmatic bronchitis are now obsolete but many times are used in clinical practice.
Allergic bronchitis is a common condition found to occur in children who are susceptible. A
family history of allergic illnesses is often found in these cases. Exciting causes could be acute viral infections of the respiratory tract, exposure to environmental allergens, change of wether or exposure to colder climates, stress etc.
Usually it starts as nasopharyngitis which affects the trachea and bronchi later. Initially
there is running of nose or sneezing, throat pain or irritation and mild fever. After 4-5 days a dry, irritating cough with or without phlegm, tightness of chest, breathlessness and wheezing come up. Cough may last for about 2 weeks or more and is typically not relieve by antibiotics. Blood examination shows an increased number of eosinophils and raised IgE levels. The episodes maybecome recurrent and severe with time. Hospitalisation and oxygen therapy are needed in severe cases. Some children with allergic bronchitis suffer from asthma in adulthood.
Homoeopathy has an excellent scope in the treatment of acute episodes and chronic cure
of allergic bronchitis. Various medicines are available for the treatment of acute episodes with good success, even preventing hospitalisation. These medicines act faster, are gentler and do not leave any residual symptoms. They have no lingering side effects. Recurrent episodes are managed with deeper acting medicines which are prescribed after individual study of the case. They not only prevent further episodes but also treat other coexisting allergic disorders and prevent asthma.
Dr. Navin Pawaskar,
Director,
JIMS Healthcare.
