COMMON COLD – INTRODUCTION

Posted under General health by admin

Whatever happened to the common cold? The people who consult me with the winter sniffles, even those with whom I pass the time of day, rarely complain that they have ‘a cold’.

It seems more serious and deserving of sympathy to complain of ‘the flu’. Any respiratory infection is often called this, but most aren’t real influenza.

The common cold, or coryza, remains the commonest respiratory infection. It is an acute illness of a few days’ duration. It may be accompanied by a low fever and there is inflammation of the lining of the nose and throat.

There are more than 80 cold viruses and the immunity produced by infection with one virus may wear off after a few years. Those who suffer frequent colds are probably affected by a different virus each time; by the time they meet the original one again, the chance is that they will again be vulnerable, as any immunity will have worn off.

Why doctors are concerned to determine whether an infection is due to a virus or a bacterium is that bacterial infections can be treated with antibiotics whereas only a few viral infections respond to these drugs.

*266/71/1*

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