Have you been coughing for weeks now? You may be infected with bacteria that lodge in the lungs. They are very numerous at the beginning of the year and a diagnosis is required from a doctor in order to eradicate them.
In this period, a symptom often comes up: coughing. She is tenacious, annoying and affects many patients. It's also hard to get rid of it, even when microbes seem to have been defeated for a long time. * "It's a boring disease that rarely prevents work, but it's often nights that's a bit of a hassle," said Lawrence Cuvelier, general practitioner.
Not a microbe
But what is it exactly? It is not a microbe in particular that is a problem this year, but rather a set of pathogens. Among these, there is an upsurge of unusual bacteria. * "Some bacteria, called atypical, such as chlamydia or mycoplasma can generate persistent cough that can then be treated with a relatively simple appropriate antibiotic" *, detailed Charles Pilette, pneumo-allergist at Cliniques Universitaires Saint -Luc, facing Eric Poncelet's camera.
An inflammatory reaction occurring after infection
Antibiotics are not always the answer. This persistent cough can, indeed, have other origins. * "Finally, in the majority of cases, the cough that will persist is often due to an inflammatory reaction occurring after infection and can then be treated rather by anti-inflammatory treatments and not by antibiotic treatments" * , said Mr. Pilette.
To best treat this tough cough, the best advice is to visit your doctor. He will diagnose precisely the cause of this annoying symptom.