I have a cold… can I get antibiotics??? (PART 1)

We ALL know that feeling…first it’s a sore throat, then a runny nose. Soon you start to feel tired and achy, and then a bad cough starts. Before you know it, you have a full blown cold and it negatively impacts you when working, exercising, and sleeping.  Time to see your doctor at City Care Family Practice for an antibiotic, right?

Not exactly…. but being seen and evaluated by your doctor at City Care will help you understand what the best treatment is… which may still be an antibiotic.

The “common cold” is typically called an acute upper respiratory infection, also known as a “URI.”   The upper respiratory system includes the ears, nose and throat.   Therefore, the most common symptoms include:

• runny nose with mucus production (can be clear/thin or dark/thick)
• stuffy nose/nasal congestion
• sore throat (also known as pharyngitis)
• loss of voice (colloquially known as laryngitis)
• ear pain/fullness
• cough

Other symptoms include:

• Fever
• Fatigue
• Body aches
• Headache
• Difficulty breathing (due to the nasal passages being blocked)

You may only have 1-2 of these symptoms, or all these symptoms.   The typical course of symptoms begins with a sore throat and runny nose before a cough develops.   A URI is usually caused by a virus, and there are over 200 different viruses that can cause a URI.  Unfortunately, it is very difficult to diagnose the exact virus causing your symptoms.  But fortunately, the treatment is the same for all these viruses.

Antibiotics only kill bacteria.  They do not kill viruses.   You may take an antibiotic for 5-10 days for a viral URI and feel like it made your symptoms disappear, but your symptoms resolved due to your body naturally fighting the virus over these 5-10 days.  It is important to not take antibiotics unnecessarily since they can cause more harm than good.  In the short term, they can cause side effects such as stomach pain, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea.  And in the long term, antibiotic resistance can develop causing that same antibiotic to be ineffective in treating future bacterial infections.

Therefore, treatment involves lessening the severity of symptoms while your body naturally fights off the virus.   Many of the symptoms of URI are due to your body fighting the virus.  Our own immune response creates the excess mucus and increased body temperature that causes most of these bothersome symptoms. Over-the-counter medications are available to lessen one’s sore throat, nasal congestion, headache, and cough to allow you to feel better and be able to go about your daily routine.  Cough suppressants, decongestants, and pain relievers can typically be taken for a 1–2-week period, either orally though combination liquid or pills, or with intranasal sprays.

The full course of a URI can last up to 7-14 days, and ultimately patience tends to be an important virtue in treatment.   However, a cough can be the last symptom to resolve and can linger for up to an extra 2-4 weeks.  As long as you are not having a persistent fever, shortness of breath, or your doctor finds abnormal lung sounds such as wheezing, symptom relief and patience is the best treatment. 

Never hesitate to schedule an appointment at City Care if you have any of the above symptoms and want to discuss what is the best treatment for you.