~Nebulizer and Bronchitis

Nebulizer

Nebulizers are commonly used for the treatment of cystic fibrosis, asthma, COPD and other respiratory diseases.

Nebulizers use oxygen, compressed air or ultrasonic power to break up medical solutions and suspensions into small aerosol droplets that can be directly inhaled from the mouthpiece of the device. The definition of an aerosol is a "mixture of gas and liquid particles," and the best example of a naturally occurring aerosol is mist, formed when small vaporized water particles mixed with hot ambient air are cooled down and condense into a fine cloud of visible airborne water droplets

Nebulizers are electric- or battery-powered machines that turn liquid asthma medicine into a fine mist that's inhaled into the lungs. The user breathes in the mist through a mouthpiece or facemask. Nebulizers vary in size and shape, but can be a bit bulky and noisy and may need to be plugged in.
A child doesn't have to "do" anything to receive the medicine except stay in one place and accept the mouthpiece or facemask. It usually takes about 5 or 10 minutes to give medication by nebulizer, and sometimes longer. Nebulizers can be less effective if a child is crying during use, since less medicine will be inhaled.


Bronchitis

Bronchitis is a respiratory disease in which the mucus membrane in the lungs' bronchial passages becomes inflamed. 

As the irritated membrane swells and grows thicker, it narrows or shuts off the tiny airways in the lungs, resulting in coughing spells that may be accompanied by phlegm and breathlessness.

The disease comes in two forms: acute (lasting from one to three weeks) and chronic (lasting at least 3 months of the year for two years in a row). 

People with asthma may also have asthmatic bronchitis, inflammation of the lining of the bronchial tubes. 

Acute bronchitis may be responsible for the hacking cough and phlegm production that sometime accompany an upper respiratory infection. In most cases, the infection is viral in origin, but sometimes it's caused by bacteria.

If you are otherwise in good health, the mucus membrane should return to normal after you've recovered from the initial lung infection, which usually lasts for several days.

Chronic bronchitis is a serious long-term disorder that often requires regular medical treatment. Individuals exposed to cigarette smoke, chemical lung irritants, or who are immunocompromised have an increased risk of developing bronchitis.

:http://kidshealth.org, http://en.wikipedia.org, http://www.webmd.com