The “flu” has hit the country: malaise, myalgias, fever, chilliness, headache, and especially cough...racking cough, with or without obvious wheezing (in asthmatics  as well as in  non-asthmatics) and with or without shortness of breath.  This appears to be a re-play of Flu 1999, which frequently continued for weeks and months in some persons as “Post-Viral Hyperreactive Airways Syndrome”:  Cough, Cough, Cough, with or without wheezing.  The way to avoid this sequence, and even the possible development of new onset Bronchial Asthma as a direct consequence, is to recognize what you are dealing with promptly, and to treat it aggressively at the outset as an asthmatic condition (even in historical non-asthmatics) with inhaled bronchodilator and with at least inhaled (if not actually oral ) steroids - cortisone  for a sufficient length of time - at least one month.  Antibiotic treatment (10-14 days) will be needed for bronchial asthma and COPD patients, and may be needed for other patients with persistent symptoms (eg. more than four or five days).  Biaxin - clarithromycin - would be a good choice, since it attacks also a variety of  flu “look-alikes” like streptococcal or Pneumococcal bacteria, H. Influenza, Mycoplasma, and Chlamydia pneumonia - TWAR organism.

Consult your MD regarding all this.

For related information, please refer to our offerings entitled:  “The Uncommon Common Cold”, and  the sections on Bronchial Asthma.

GS