What is an Acute Illness?
Acute illness is an illness that comes about very quickly but only lasts for a short time. Although acute illnesses do not last for very long, they can still be extremely dangerous in some cases—even deadly. Most of the time, however, acute illnesses can be treated with natural remedies.
Proper management of these types of illnesses involves establishing what exactly is making someone sick so treatment plans can be created.
What are The Signs and Symptoms of Acute Illness?
Signs of acute illness come on very quickly. Some patients may feel completely healthy in the morning, and feel terrible in the afternoon. Symptoms of acute illness include:
- Nausea
- Vomiting
- Diarrhea
- Headache/migraine
- Runny/stuffy nose
- Coughing
- Aches and pains
- Confusion
- Rash
Experiencing a collection of these symptoms at the same time can help provide information about the nature of an illness.
Causes of Acute Illness
Common causes of an acute illness include allergies, drug reactions, infections with microorganisms, and autoimmune disorders.
Below is a list of common acute illnesses we treat at our clinic:
- Sinusitis (acute and chronic) – an inflammation of the sinuses, usually due to an infection from a virus, bacteria, or fungus.
- Cold – the common cold usually causes a runny nose, nasal congestion, and sneezing. People also experience a sore throat, cough, headache, and other symptoms.
- Flus (influenza) – an infection of the nose, throat, and lungs. It is able to spread easily and quickly.
- Bronchitis – a respiratory disease in which the mucus membrane in the lungs’ bronchial passages becomes irritated and inflamed resulting in coughing spells accompanied by phlegm and breathlessness.
- Pneumonia – a lung infection that can make you very ill. You may have a cough, run a fever, and have difficulties breathing. Pneumonia can be accompanied with a cough, fever, chest pain, nausea and vomiting, and fatigue.
- Urinary Tract Infection (UTI) – is an infection that can happen anywhere along the urinary tract. UTI infections can have different names, depending on what area of the urinary tract is infected. Most UTI infections are bladder infections. Symptoms include: pain or burning during urination, feeling as if you have to urinate often, but not much comes out when you do, tender or heavy belly, pain, cloudy urine that may smell bad, fever, and chills.
It is important to seek treatment for acute illnesses, even if you don’t think it is worth it–because it is. Call our office today for treatment options as well as natural and naturopathic medicine recommendations.
