▶ Overlap of flu, coronavirus, and RSV
▶ Coughing continues for more than a month… CDC “Vaccine now”
Mr. Lee, in his 50s and living in Koreatown, LA, has not stopped coughing since last month. Even though I bought medicine at the pharmacy, the cough showed no signs of going away. Ms. Lee complained that her cough had not stopped for over a month, making it difficult for her to carry out her daily life. She confessed that she continued to have a dry cough even when she went to work in her office, so she had to wear a mask all day while working while observing the opinions of her colleagues sitting around her.
Mr. Lee is not alone in suffering from a long-term cough or cold. This winter, the number of patients suffering from respiratory diseases increased significantly in Southern California. Korean internal medicine hospitals and clinics in Southern California are crowded with Korean cold patients. Analysis suggests that since the official end of the COVID-19 pandemic, many people’s immunity has weakened and the number of cold patients has increased as more people go on year-end season trips or participate in year-end gatherings.
According to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the number of respiratory patients has recently increased nationwide. So far, at least 5.3 million people have been sick, 54,000 of them hospitalized. The death toll alone amounts to 3,200. The CDC recently issued a health alert to doctors across the United States, saying, “Vaccination is urgently needed to combat respiratory diseases this winter.” The CDC recommends that patients get vaccinated to protect against COVID-19, flu, and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) for the remainder of the season.
Jeong Jun, an internal medicine specialist, said, “Even when I talk to other doctors these days, it seems like there are more patients with persistent coughs than before.” He added, “After the pandemic, people’s immunity has weakened, and vaccination rates have decreased due to vaccine fatigue, so patients with colds are suffering from colds.” “I think there are a lot of them,” he said.
Specialist Jeong Jun continued, “After suffering from coronavirus, flu, cold, etc., the inflammation remains in the body and causes a dry cough. The cough can last for up to two months.” He added, “The reasons why a cough lasts for a long time are different for each person, so it is better to visit a hospital. “The most important thing is to get a diagnosis,” he explained.
Coughing is the body’s natural response to spitting out colds or foreign substances that form in the bronchial tubes. You need to expel these by-products, or phlegm, out of the body through coughing, but if these phlegm-like substances continue to form without disappearing or if the bronchial tubes expand as the cough prolongs, the cough continues even if there is no phlegm later.
This is sometimes called chronic cough or dry cough. If this dry cough continues without stopping, it can lead to chronic bronchitis, and the air sacs in the lungs are expanded and do not shrink, making you cough more and more.
In severe cases, it can lead to symptoms of pneumonia. Therefore, once the phlegm disappears, you need to be able to stop this dry cough as quickly as possible. However, if you take antibiotics for a long time, it can damage your stomach or intestines, and resistance to antibiotics may develop, which can cause antibiotics to stop working in your body later when you really need them. .
Yeon Tae-heum, director of Korea-Japan Oriental Medicine Clinic, warned, “Once you have been coughing for a long time, you must avoid cold foods at all costs. Even if your cough has improved by more than 80%, eating cold foods such as ice cream can cause your cough to become severe again.” He added, “Drink water frequently, but drink it slowly, little by little, as if to moisten your throat. Warm or lukewarm water is best.”
Reporter Seok In-hee>
2023-12-27 05:02:50
#Hospitals #respiratory #patients #crowded
