Your GP will usually only prescribe antibiotics if they think you have pneumonia, or you're at risk of complications such as fluid building up around the lungs (pleurisy). If there's a flu outbreak in your local area and you're at risk of serious infection, your GP may also prescribe antiviral medication.
The symptoms of viral and bacterial chest infections are similar but the colour of any mucus coughed up may indicate the cause; white or clear mucus usually indicates a viral infection whereas green or yellow mucus suggests that the infection is bacterial.
If you have a bacterial chest infection, you should start to feel better 24 to 48 hours after starting on antibiotics. You may have a cough for days or weeks. For other types of chest infections, the recovery is more gradual. You may feel weak for some time and need a longer period of bed rest.
However, if you have other respiratory illnesses such as bronchitis or pneumonia with COVID-19, you may have a wet cough that contains mucus. Does coughing up mucus mean you're getting better? In most cases, coughing up mucus means your body is working to fight off an infection, and it is in the healing stages.
Many mild chest infections will resolve on their own in about a week's time. A chest infection that's caused by bacteria will need to be treated with a course of antibiotics. Severe or complicated chest infections may require treatment in a hospital.
Your GP should be able to diagnose you based on your symptoms. They will also listen to your chest using a stethoscope (a medical instrument used to listen to the heart and lungs). In some cases, further tests – such as a chest X-ray, breathing tests and testing phlegm or blood samples – may be necessary.
After 2 or 3 days, mucus may change to a white, yellow, or green color. This is normal and does not mean you need an antibiotic. Some symptoms, especially runny or stuffy nose and cough, can last for up to 10 to 14 days.
Both pharmacists can write prescriptions, so if after examining you they feel you have a bacterial infection they are able to write you a prescription for the most appropriate treatment.
"Pharmacists are trained to advise you on managing your symptoms," says Livingstone. "They are also used to recognising the signs of chest infection. If you're unsure, they can be a good place to start."
Many chest infections are caused by a virus. This usually clears up by itself after a few weeks and antibiotics won't help. Some chest infections are caused by bacteria. Your GP may prescribe antibiotics.
Bacterial and Viral Infections
Infections such as the flu, acute bronchitis, and pneumonia can cause your airways to make extra mucus, which you'll often cough up. It may be green or yellow in color.
What dissolves mucus in the lungs? Expectorants such as guaifenesin (Mucinex, Robitussin) can loosen mucus so that it comes out of the throat and chest.
Drinking warm liquids
Warm water, tea, and other hot drinks help to thin mucus, making coughing easier. A 2008 study suggests that hot beverages can provide “immediate and sustained relief from symptoms of a runny nose, cough, sneezing, sore throat, chilliness, and tiredness“.
If you see green or yellow phlegm, it's usually a sign that your body is fighting an infection. The color comes from white blood cells. At first, you may notice yellow phlegm that then progresses into green phlegm. The change occurs with the severity and length of the potential sickness.
FALSE: If you have green or yellow mucus, it's a bacterial infection and you need antibiotics. Colds, sore throats, upper respiratory infections and influenza (the flu) are caused by viruses, which could cause colored mucus. Antibiotics won't kill, prevent or stop spreading viruses.
Green or Yellow Mucus
White blood cells rush to battle infection, and when they've done their job, they get flushed out of the body along with the virus. The yellow color comes from dead white blood cells, which can turn green if there are a lot of white blood cells and other debris.
a cough – which may be dry, or produce thick yellow, green, brown or blood-stained mucus (phlegm) difficulty breathing – your breathing may be rapid and shallow, and you may feel breathless, even when resting. rapid heartbeat. fever.
If you have coronavirus (COVID-19), you can spread the virus to other people for up to 10 days from when your infection starts. But many people will no longer be contagious to others after 5 days.
If your pneumonia isn't treated, the pleura can get swollen, creating a sharp pain when you breathe in. If you don't treat the swelling, the area between the pleura may fill with fluid, which is called a pleural effusion. If the fluid gets infected, it leads to a problem called empyema.
Untreated viral or bacterial bronchitis can turn into viral or bacterial pneumonia.
A cough is a reflex action to clear your airways of mucus and irritants such as dust or smoke. It's rarely a sign of anything serious. Most coughs clear up within 3 weeks and don't require any treatment.
Green mucus is an indication that your body is fighting off a more serious infection. While the green color may be alarming, it's a natural byproduct of the immune system activity necessary to fight off the infection. Consider seeing your doctor if your other symptoms are getting worse.
So here's the big question: Do you spit or swallow your phlegm? Even though it might taste nasty, “there's nothing wrong with swallowing it,” Dr. Comer says. In fact, that's probably what your body expects you to do, which is why phlegm naturally drains down into the back of your throat.