What is bronchitis?

Also known as: acute bronchitis, chest cold, chronic bronchitis.

The respiratory airways are the tubes that carry air into the lungs when one breathes in and allows for the carbon dioxide made by the body’s metabolism to be breathed out. These airways include the mouth, the trachea, bronchi and the smaller airways called bronchioles.

Bronchitis is a respiratory infection where there is inflammation of the trachea, bronchi and bronchioles. It may be acute (short-term) or chronic (a persistent cough lasting > 2 weeks).

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Reviewed by: Jack Wolfsdorf, MD, FAAP

This page was last updated on: 1/29/2019 3:21:13 PM