Your cold， defined
Here s a concise medical
description of a cold. \" An
acute， usually afebrile， ca-
tarrhal respiratory tract
infection， with major in-
volvement in any or all air-
ways， including tile nose，
paranasal passages， throat.
larynx， and often the tra-
chea and bronchi.\" What
do these phrases mean?
Three major things: Colds
bring little or no fever ( afe-
brile)， cause increased mu-
cus flow (catarrhal)， and
may affect tissues from
your nose to your lungs
and anywhere in between.
Notice that a specific infec-
tious agent isn t mentioned.
A cold s symptoms are
distinctive but its causes
aren t， because the cause
can be any one of several
hundred viral strains
Medical Knowledge
about Colds
or centuries， people have suffered from the com-
mon cold， unable to point to its cause. Today，
specialists can describe with some precision what
causes colds. They ve made discoveries， too， about
how colds spread from person to person， who are the
likeliest targets， how colds can lead to more serious
illness. But specialists still can t tell you how to get
rid of a cold once you\"ve caught it.
What is a cold?
The common cold is the most common illness suffered
by humans. If you don t have a cold right now， you re
almost sure to get one within the next 12 months.
Because we all have colds occasionally， we know what
we mean when we talk about this illness. If it weren t
for our common experience with colds， however， de-
fining colds would be next to impossible.
Colds are viral infections， but they re caused by
several hundred distinct viruses belonging to several
different viral families. To further complicate things，
your short bout with flu viruses or other viruses can
produce symptoms identical to those of more com-
mon cold viruses. Only when your symptoms pro-
gress in particular ways can anyone know whether
you have a cold or the flu.
Cold symptoms vary enormously. The usual symp-
toms include sneezing， sinus congestion， runny nose，
sore throat， cough， low fever， and headache. It you
experience any combination of these symptoms， you ll
probably believe you ve caught a cold. Of course， your
conclusion could be incorrect: the same symptoms
could signal the beginnings of another illness--
whooping cough， influenza， strep throat， or even an
Other names for a allergy. Sooner or later， if your symptoms worsen， if
cold they don t disappear when you think they should， or
Two terms describing colds
go back hundreds of years if uncoldlike symptoms show up， you 11 stop believing
Now seen mostly in medical you have a cold and start considering other diseases
books， catarrh and coryza Cold symptoms result from your body s defense
were once common ways of against infection. The inflammation that causes most
naming a runny nose. Both of a cold s symptoms is part of that defense process.
terms derive from Greek
roots meaning essentially Doctors think of a cold as a syndrome--a group of
the same thing， \"increased symptoms that reach a certain severity and last a
flow.\" certain time. To say that you have a cold is， in a
Cold sym
What and
Runny， itchy eyes
Cough
Muscle ac~.~i
and pain
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