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Suggest Treatment For Acute Cold With Constant Cough
Brief Answer:
Most of the time, these are viral, symptomatic treatment is enough
Detailed Answer:
Hi there XXXXXXX Thanks for coming to HealthCareMagic,
I agree, the symptoms you report seem to be those of an acute Upper Repspiratory Tract infection (a cold). Statistically, these are generally caused by viruses and Antibiotics don't help in such cases.
If it's viral, your own immune system will kick in and take care of it for you, the best thing is to help support that process. Plenty of sleep, plenty of fluids and plenty of healthy food will do wonders.
To help manage the symptoms, there are some over the counter medications that will tide you over. In general, medications that contain a combination of Chlorpheniramine and Diphenhydramine will help you with the symptoms. Many brands exist that have those meds in them.. One brand is Sinarest... but don;t get too caught up on brand names. Just ask your local pharmacist, they should be able to help you find the appropriate meds.
If the infection persists beyond the 5th day with no signs of getting better. Then it would be a good idea to start an antibiotic. I normally recommend a course of Augmentin, if the infection has spread to the lungs and you have a heavy cough as well, then levofloxacin would be my choice.
Antibiotics like Augmentin or Levofloxacin ARE PRESCRIPTION ONLY. So you need to go to your Primary Doctor and discuss getting a prescription from them. They will have to make sure you are not allergic and have no liver or kidney issues before giving the written prescription.
I hope this helps, let me know how I can further assist you.
Vin
Most of the time, these are viral, symptomatic treatment is enough
Detailed Answer:
Hi there XXXXXXX Thanks for coming to HealthCareMagic,
I agree, the symptoms you report seem to be those of an acute Upper Repspiratory Tract infection (a cold). Statistically, these are generally caused by viruses and Antibiotics don't help in such cases.
If it's viral, your own immune system will kick in and take care of it for you, the best thing is to help support that process. Plenty of sleep, plenty of fluids and plenty of healthy food will do wonders.
To help manage the symptoms, there are some over the counter medications that will tide you over. In general, medications that contain a combination of Chlorpheniramine and Diphenhydramine will help you with the symptoms. Many brands exist that have those meds in them.. One brand is Sinarest... but don;t get too caught up on brand names. Just ask your local pharmacist, they should be able to help you find the appropriate meds.
If the infection persists beyond the 5th day with no signs of getting better. Then it would be a good idea to start an antibiotic. I normally recommend a course of Augmentin, if the infection has spread to the lungs and you have a heavy cough as well, then levofloxacin would be my choice.
Antibiotics like Augmentin or Levofloxacin ARE PRESCRIPTION ONLY. So you need to go to your Primary Doctor and discuss getting a prescription from them. They will have to make sure you are not allergic and have no liver or kidney issues before giving the written prescription.
I hope this helps, let me know how I can further assist you.
Vin
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
Answered by
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