Question

What is the diagnosis of an adult who presents for evaluation of a cough and the following symptoms.  She is normally a healthy young lady with no significant medical history. She takes no medications and does not smoke. She reports that she was in her usual state of good health until approximately 3 weeks ago when she developed a “really bad cold.” The cold is characterized by a profound, deep, mucus-producing cough. She denies any rhinorrhea or rhinitis—the primary problem is the cough. She develops these coughing fits that are prolonged, very deep, and productive of a lot of green sputum. She hasn’t had any fever but does have a scratchy throat. Maria has tried over-the-counter cough medicines but has not had much relief. The cough keeps her awake at night and sometimes gets so bad that she gags and dry heaves.

Answer 1

The patients show dry hacking cough, and prolonged cough leads to productive of green sputum. The patient does not associate with fever but has a scratchy throat. The signs and symptoms of mucus-producing cough with green sputum show that the patient is suffered from Bronchitis.

Bronchitis is the inflammation of the airways that differs from the flu. The thick secretion of mucus blocks the airways and narrowing cause continuous prolonged cough. It is most commonly caused by a virus and infected cell that moves into the airway changes the color of the sputum into the green. Coughing is a mechanism whereby the body tries to clear the sputum by expelling. Scratchy throat is due to the irritants of the throat.