Is bronchitis contagious?

Acute bronchitis (aka Chest Cold) is a condition where the tubes that carry air to your lungs, called bronchial tubes, become inflamed. This inflammation can lead to coughing, difficulty breathing, and chest discomfort. A virus or bacteria often cause it and can be acute (short-term) or chronic (long-term). Symptoms include coughing up mucus, wheezing, and sometimes fever. Rest, hydration, and medications can help ease symptoms, but severe cases may require medical attention.

In the UK, doctors do not usually prescribe antibiotics as most infections are caused by viruses rather than bacteria and antibiotics only work against bacteria. Those who have asthma or COPD will be advised to use inhalers. If the doctor suspects a bacterial infection, they will prescribe antibiotics.

While bronchitis itself isn’t contagious, the virus or bacteria that has caused the inflammation is. If a virus causes bronchitis, you will usually be contagious for a few days to a week from onset. If bacteria cause the bronchitis, you will usually stop being contagious around 1-2 days after starting antibiotics and should start to feel better in 2-3 days.

Chronic bronchitis is an ongoing problem usually caused by other irritants, such as smoking, air pollution, allergens such as pollen, chemicals, or genetics. It is a type of COPD and is not contagious. Chronic bronchitis causes swelling and mucus in the airways, or tubes, that bring air in and out of the lungs. It involves permanent damage to the lungs and cannot be entirely cured or symptoms prevented, but it can be managed by removing the triggers, using oral corticosteroids in flare-ups, and using prescribed inhalers or nebulisers. When flare-ups occur, they can be life-threatening and, in some cases, require admittance to the hospital. Severe symptoms include shortness of breath, reduced oxygen levels, blue tinges to the lips (cyanosis), wheezing, coughing, fatigue, rapid breathing and rapid heart rate.