“Can a respiratory therapist help treat a bronchitis infection?”
My husband is home with a bronchitis infection and has been taking medication for it. Will respiratory therapy help to treat his bronchitis faster?
4 Answers
RespiratoryTherapistBronchitis
Audrey Marie Ballard
Respiratory Therapist, Registered
Hello! Typically the right antibiotic should help clear the infection. Each patient's ability and time it takes to heal is different due to other factors. Within my experience as a Respiratory Therapist, I have administrated respiratory medications and other modalities to treat specific respiratory symptoms while the patient had bronchitis. The best way to know the correct respiratory treatment regimen is for your husband to be assessed by his healthcare provider.
Hope he feels better soon.
Hope he feels better soon.
A respiratory therapist will be able to help break down the secretions (with medication) and help your husband improve his breathing and cough reflex.
Navdeep Kaur, MD
Navdeep Kaur, MD
It depends on several factors. Respiratory therapists work with physicians administering nebulizer treatments, and regulating advanced life support such as the placement of breathing tubes and operating the ventilator. I think the most important questions are: is he on the correct medication for bronchitis, is he smoking or exposed to second hand smoke, and if he was prescribed inhalers is he using them correctly (this can be challenging for anyone). My final thought is how long has he been taking medication. Sometimes it can take 4-5 days for the medication to reach a steady state in the body and for the patient to really feel significally improved.
If the respiratory therapist does vibration therapy (essentially banging repeatedly on the back) that could help bring up some extra congestion and phlegm but otherwise not likely useful or probably worth the expense. Please remember bronchitis is a not a bacterial infection (except in regular or heavy former smokers) so antibiotics should not be used. Asthma inhalers can sometimes help symptoms. Menthol or eucalyptus inhalation can also help. There isn't definitive research in acute bronchitis but I've repeatedly seen benefit with N-Acetyl-Cysteine 1200 mg twice daily (this is a supplement). Of course basics such as hydration (especially with warm liquids) and short-term avoidance of pro-inflammatory foods such as gluten, dairy and sugar will also help.