Tennova Healthcare Examines the Common Cold

1/22/2018

Is it a cold? Is it the flu? When should you call the doctor?

The common cold is the number one reason for lost work and school time throughout the industrialized world. The average adult will get two or three colds each year, while children can go through 5–10 cycles. With the onset of the flu season, however, it isn’t always easy to distinguish between a cold, the flu and a sinus infection. Tennova Healthcare wants to shed some light on the differences.

The typical cold starts with sore throat and runny nose, followed by sneezing and coughing. Most people will recover fully within a week or 10 days.

“There are over 200 different viruses that can cause a cold, the most common being the rhinovirus,” said Deborah Russell, FNP, a certified family nurse practitioner with Tennova LaFollette Medical Center Clinic – South. "While a cold can vary in intensity from mildly annoying to quite severe, it’s important to note that it is virus-based, meaning antibiotics will have no effect. You can treat the symptoms, but unfortunately you just have to wait it out.”

Perhaps the question being asked most frequently in doctors’ offices across the country right now is this: “Is it a cold, a sinus infection or the flu?”

While your primary care provider or local urgent care center can quickly rule out the flu with a simple swab test, distinguishing between a cold and a sinus infection is trickier. In most cases, though, it’s irrelevant. Only a small number of cases involving cold or flu-like symptoms are bacterial in nature. Therefore, the preponderance will not respond to antibiotics. This leaves most patients with no recourse but to deal with the virus while minimizing the pain and suffering.

Here are a few tips that may help:

• Manage a fever. In both adults and children, a fever is rare with a cold. One of the best ways to distinguish a cold from a suspected case of flu is by a fever. If you or your child experiences a fever of 101 degrees or higher for more than a day, it’s best to get a flu test just to be safe. Otherwise, acetaminophen is the preferred method for reducing fever—just be very mindful of dosing instructions, and don’t take more than one medicine at a time containing acetaminophen. Ibuprofen can also be used, but avoid aspirin and never give it to a child under age 12.
• Stop a runny nose/post-nasal drip. Your sore throat (if it is not a strep infection) is most likely being caused by nasal discharge dripping down your throat. The best way to dry it up is with an antihistamine. Note, however, that these make some people very sleepy.
• Unclog your nose. A stuffed nose is a terrible feeling and can prevent you from sleeping for several nights in a row during a cold. Talk to your doctor, nurse practitioner or a pharmacist about the best over-the-counter decongestant choice for you, but be cautious not to overuse.
• Relieve sinus pressure and pain. Nasal steroids, both over the counter and prescription, can relieve cold symptoms and seasonal allergies.
• Loosen cough or mucus. If you can’t kick the cough and move the mucus out, try an expectorant to help thin the drainage.
• Reduce coughing. For many people, the cough is the worst part of a cold. Try an antitussive or a product with dextromethorphan to help suppress the cough and get some sleep.
• Relieve a sore throat. Gargle with warm salty water a couple of times per day, and try throat lozenges or an analgesic at bedtime. Monitor your throat for white or yellow spots, or severe/increasing pain that may indicate a strep infection.
• Catch some ZZZs. Your immune system needs sleep to fight back. Nighttime over-the-counter products should be used judiciously, but can provide much-needed relief. Be sure to read labels and find products safe for you, especially if you have high blood pressure or other medical conditions, or are taking products with similar ingredients.

One of the most puzzling parts of a cold is the multitude of symptoms. For instance, you may be diagnosed with an inner ear infection, a lower respiratory tract infection, or sinusitis. However, most of these cases are viral in nature—not bacterial. Thus, antibiotics will still be ineffective in treating or shortening the illness.

It’s important, however, to see a doctor or nurse practitioner if your symptoms move beyond the basic ones listed here. A lower respiratory infection can take residence in your lungs and turn into pneumonia. Sinusitis left untreated can result in a bacterial infection. Your primary care provider is the best resource to distinguish between a viral and bacterial condition, and to recommend the appropriate course of treatment, if any.

“While frustrating, there isn’t much we can do to avoid getting colds altogether,” Russell said. "Keep your immune system strong with proper diet and exercise, practice good hygiene to avoid catching viruses others are carrying, and get your flu shot to reduce the odds of a more severe illness or complications.”

For more information or to find a doctor, call 1-855-TENNOVA (836-6682).

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