Treatment / What you should do
In bronchitis caused by a virus, antibiotics (which kill bacteria) are of no help.
There are no routine medications available to kill the virus. There are however, treatments that may help your child feel better.
Encourage your child to drink a lot of fluids, since this helps loosen up the mucus in the breathing tubes. Warm drinks may also help to soothe a sore throat and quiet the dry cough.
It may help to humidify the air in the bedroom by using a humidifier or by hanging up wet towels over a chair near a radiator.
Expectorants may also be used to loosen the mucous, or help dry up the secretions, and cough suppressants may help your child get a good night's sleep.
If your child is struggling to breathe, his overall condition is worsening, or if his fever becomes very high, you should contact the doctor.
If your child has a bacterial infection, the doctor will prescribe an antibiotic. If your child seems to have obstructed respiratory passages (wheezing), the doctor may prescribe an asthma medicine.
If your child is known to have asthma, his asthma medication should be increased according to the child's "Asthma Action Plan".
Prevention
It is not easy to prevent your child from developing bronchitis, since it may occur after a cold or other respiratory infection caused by a virus. However, since these viruses are spread by droplets in the air from an infected person and by hand-to-hand contact, frequent hand washing may make it less likely that your child will become infected with a virus.
You should keep your child home from daycare or school when they have fever, and also when they have a severe cold, since the risk of infecting other children is high and they will not feel like being around other children anyway.
Children who grow up in homes where there are smokers tend to catch colds more often than children from smoke-free homes. Therefore, always avoid exposing your child to second-hand smoke as much as you can.
