Still Sick (When Will This End?)

I thought I would feel better today, but instead, I feel worse. I am worried that this illness (I think it is bronchitis) will require medical intervention. Which means more unpaid hospital ER bills. But I am at the library today where I have access to a free, and very stable wifi connection, so I am working on a story for you right now.

More like this

A colleague has told me about some interesting data that people are far less likely to request an antibiotic for a chest cold than for bronchitis even though they're the same thing. With that in mind, here's something from the archives.
A recent, must-read article for anyone concerned about the problem of misuse of antibiotics to treat viral bronchitis, not to mention anyone who prescribes antibiotics, was recently published in Clinical Infectious Disease
Serum Vitamin D Levels and Markers of Severity of Childhood Asthma in Costa Rica. See ScienceDaily.
I am sick.

Why ER? Get to the clinic stat! It's much cheaper than ER.

the hospital that i now rely on as my primary health care provider has a clinic that i go to. i just have to access that clinic through the ER.

Hey, bronchitis is not to be trifled with. Get to a doctor pronto.

I'm going out on a limb to guess that this is postviral bronchitis, a lingering aftereffect that sometimes plagues people who have already shaken off a respiratory virus. It's caused by a vicious cycle of inflammation, coughing, and confused immune system. The usual therapy is a steroid inhalant; the steroid inhibits the misguided immune response in the inflamed airway, breaking the cycle.

But I am no doctor; this opinion is worth exactly what you paid for it.