Differential Diagnoses of Bronchitis

Bronchitis is a condition involving inflammation of the airways that transport air to the lungs, which are commonly known as the bronchial tubes. The inflammation of the bronchial tubes results in a cough that usually brings mucus. From a clinical perspective, bronchitis is usually diagnosed based on cough as well as occasional wheeze, dyspnea, and sputum (Wark, 2015). As part of the diagnosis, the physician or clinician examines various clinical characteristics of this condition. Some of the clinical characteristics of bronchitis include a lower fever, shortness of breath, chest tightness, and wheezing. These clinical characteristics in turn help to determine whether the individual suffers from acute or chronic bronchitis. For acute bronchitis, these clinical characteristics last for few weeks while chronic bronchitis is characterized by more severe clinical attributes.
The diagnosis of bronchitis also entail using different diagnostic, laboratory or imaging tools. One of the diagnostic or screening tools used to diagnose bronchitis is chest x-ray, which is carried out to determine whether the bronchial tubes and lungs are normal. This diagnostic tool is appropriate for diagnosis of this condition because it helps to determine the condition of the bronchial tubes and lungs with respect to any inflammation. The second diagnostic/screening tool used for this condition is sputum tests, which helps to examine mucus in coughs. These tests are appropriate for diagnosis of the condition since they help to identify mucus in the cough, which is one of the major clinical characteristics of bronchitis. For a patient suffering from this condition, the most suitable course of action involves therapeutic management. Therapeutic management of this condition incorporates supportive care and systematic management, which are the core treatment approaches for bronchitis (Kinkade & Long, 2016). Such care will entail the use of over-the-counter medications and antibiotics based on the severity of the condition.
Patient History and Physical Exam
The diagnosis of bronchitis involves examining patient history and conducting physical examination. For a patient visiting a physician’s office, diagnosis of this condition would involve reviewing his/her clinical history and physical examination. Elements in patient history that could help diagnose the condition include history of exposure to toxic substances and smoking, history of coughing, and information regarding past experiences with this condition or coughs. Elements of physical exam that could help in diagnosis of this condition in the patient include fever, wheeze, sputum production, dyspnea, bronchial breathing sounds, and pneumonia (Kinkade & Long, 2016).
While these elements could help determine whether the patient is suffering from bronchitis, they could also result in differential diagnosis. One of the differential diagnoses that could be applicable to the patient is asthma, which is an condition involving airway obstruction and brought by occupational and environmental exposures. The patient could be diagnosed with asthma if there is evidence of airway obstruction during physical examination. In addition to airway obstruction, this differential diagnosis could be applicable if physical examination shows signs of wheezing, chronic cough, and bronchial breathing sounds. The second differential diagnosis that could be applied to this patient is acute cough, which is the most common complaint by patients during physician visit (Holzinger et al., 2014). This differential diagnosis could be applied to the patient if his/her clinical history shows a history of smoking, past respiratory tract infections, history of asthma and allergies, family history of respiratory tract infections, and a history of breathing problems. In addition to these elements, the patient could be diagnosed with acute cough if physical examination shows fever, pain in the throat or limbs, dyspnea, and bronchial breathing sounds.
References
Holzinger et al. (2014, May). The Diagnosis and Treatment of Acute Cough in Adults. Deutsches Arzteblatt, 111(20), 356-363.
Kinkade, S. & Long, N.A. (2016, October 1). Acute Bronchitis. American Family Physician, 94(7), 560-565.
Wark, P. (2015, July 17). Bronchitis (Acute). BMJ Clinical Evidence, 2015(1508). Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4505629/