似乎永不休止的感冒 为什么一直不见好转

Rhinovirus replicates best in the relatively lower body temperatures of the upper respiratory area, such as the nasal passages, sinuses and throat.
包括冠状病毒、呼吸道合胞病毒和肠道病毒在内的其他病毒也被确认会引发感冒症状。NIH的分支、美国国家过敏症与传染病研究所(National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases)主任安东尼·福西(Anthony Fauci)说：“最令人困惑的事情是，还有20%至30%成年人普通感冒病症的原因未查明。”

Other viruses, such as the less-common adenovirus, can replicate and attach to receptors in the upper and lower respiratory tracts, causing a more serious illness.
有些情况下，似乎永不休止的感冒可能是更严重病症的信号。感冒有可能引发鼻窦感染、支气管炎或肺炎，而有时候感冒症状又会被误认为是季节性过敏。

Other viruses -- including the coronavirus, respiratory syncytial virus and enterovirus -- have also been identified as causing cold symptoms. 'The most confounding thing of all is that we still haven't identified the cause of 20% to 30% of adult common colds,' said Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health.
医生指出，感冒之后持续的干咳通常是由支气管高反应性或气管感染造成的。天普大学医院的莫耶医生说：“你的呼吸系统经历了感染后，基本上你会出现暂时性的哮喘，你的支气管反应会非常剧烈，感染和炎症也会很严重。”

Sometimes a cold that never seems to end could be a sign of something more serious. A cold may result in a sinus infection, bronchitis or pneumonia. And cold symptoms are at times confused with seasonal allergies.
去年发表于《家庭医学年鉴》(Annals of Family Medicine)的一篇论文对多项不同研究进行了综述，它发现咳嗽平均持续18天左右。该研究还指出，针对近500人的调研发现，大多数调研参与者认为咳嗽症状应该会在一周左右后消失，并相信医生开给他们的抗生素对他们有帮助。（实际上是大大的不可能！）

A usually dry cough that lingers after a cold is typically due to bronchial hyperreactivity or tracheal inflammation, doctors say. 'After you go through an infection in your respiratory system, you can almost have a transient form of asthma where your bronchial tubes are very highly reactive and very irritated and inflamed,' said Dr. Moyer, of Temple University Hospital.
有些专家认为，在感染了一种感冒病毒、免疫系统减弱后，你会更容易感染另一种病毒。这是因为当你感冒时你鼻内的上皮衬里会变弱，充当保护屏障的黏膜受损后可能更易于感染另一种病毒。

A review of various studies, published last year in the journal Annals of Family Medicine, found that coughs on average last about 18 days. The report also said a survey of nearly 500 people found that most participants expected a cough should disappear in about a week and believed antibiotics from their doctor would help them. (A big no-no!)
但是，另一些专家则持有不同看法。NIH的福西医生说，干扰素之类的蛋白质（在感冒期间分泌以帮助抵抗病毒）可能会提高对感染第二种病毒的抵抗力。

Some experts believe having one cold virus and a weakened immune system could make catching another virus easier. Because the epithelial linings in the nose are weakened when you have a cold, the broken down mucus-membrane barrier may be more prone to picking up another virus.
那么，我们能做些什么来防止感冒或缩短感冒时间？几乎每个人都认识一些深信服用紫锥菊、锌或吞下大量维生素C有效的人。

But others suggest that proteins such as interferons, which are secreted during a cold to help fight the virus, may also boost resistance to getting infected by a second virus, according to Dr. Fauci, of the NIH.
然而，医生指出，没有确凿的证据能证明这些疗法有效。有些研究指出，运动和冥想可能有助于防止感冒。

What can a person do to prevent or shorten a cold? Nearly everyone knows someone who swears by taking echinacea or zinc or downing packs of vitamin C.
好消息是，春天来临了（至少名义上如此），冬季最糟糕的寒冷时节就要结束了。不过，到了夏天，又会有新一批的病毒出现，你也许会发现自己又和讨厌的夏季感冒碰面了。