How to Spot Pneumonia: Common Symptoms

by Brent Boyd

Pneumonia is inflammation and often infection of the lungs. Although some forms of pneumonia are mild and don't require medical treatment, other forms of the disease can be severe and need prompt medical intervention. Statistics indicate that over 3 million people in the United States are diagnosed with pneumonia each year, and many of them require hospitalization. When pneumonia is caused by infectious agents, the disease is very contagious and it can be easily transmitted through sneezing, cough or physical contact. Therefore, many patients are not hospitalized for the seriousness of their disease, but to prevent them from spreading pneumonia to other people.

There are many forms of pneumonia and some are not caused by infection with microorganisms. Aspiration pneumonia is common in very small children and elderly people, but it can also occur in adults. This form of pneumonia is caused by inhalation of foreign matters: fluids, dust, chemicals or other irritants. This condition is mostly common in small children due to inhalation of vomit or food. Aspiration pneumonia symptoms are usually not very intense and they ameliorate within a few days. Aspiration pneumonia symptoms are: dry cough, chest soreness and pain, wheezing, difficult breathing. Although medical treatment is not required for overcoming this form of pneumonia, it is best to see a doctor as soon as you spot its symptoms.

Infectious forms of pneumonia can be either caused by viruses, bacteria and mycoplasmas. Viral and mycoplasma pneumonia are usually milder than bacterial forms of the disease and they rarely require medical treatment.

Viral pneumonia is very common in children, teenagers and elderly people and it can be mistaken for flu or cold. Viral pneumonia symptoms are: throat inflammation, cough, swelling of the lymph nodes, chest discomfort when breathing, headache and a generalized state of fatigue. The cough can sometimes produce small amounts of mucus. Mild fever and chills may accompany viral pneumonia symptoms in the early stages of the disease. Viral pneumonia symptoms usually ameliorate within a few days and the infection completely clears up on itself in a few weeks.

Bacterial pneumonia can be severe and therefore, it can produce more intense symptoms. Bacterial forms of pneumonia are more common in adults and people with weak immune system. Bacterial pneumonia symptoms are: high fever, excessive sweating, mucus-producing cough, shortness of breath, chest pain and soreness when breathing, abdominal pain, nausea, muscle pain, pronounced body weakness. Bacterial pneumonia symptoms can also include cyanosis (due to lack of blood oxygenation) and brown-colored mucus producing cough. If the disease is severe, the cough may contain traces of blood.

Mycoplasma pneumonia can be developed by anyone, regardless of health condition and age. However, this form of pneumonia is usually mild and doesn't require any medical treatment. Mycoplasma pneumonia symptoms are: mucus producing cough, chest pain, difficulty breathing, headache, fatigue. Other mycoplasma pneumonia symptoms are: moderate fever, chills, abdominal pain and discomfort, nausea and vomiting. This form of pneumonia develops slowly and its symptoms may only be perceived after several weeks from catching the disease. Although mycoplasma pneumonia is not considered to be serious, it is advised to see a doctor as soon as you spot its first symptoms.

About the Author
Read about viral throat infection and at the Throat Problemswebsite.

Diagnosing process in pneumonia

by Groshan Fabiola

There are two main categories of pneumonia based on how the disease was contacted. There is community acquired pneumonia and hospital acquired pneumonia. If a person suffers from the first category of pneumonia, then the diagnosing process can be very simple, based only on a physical examination and the medical history of the patient. However, this is only if his/ her pneumonia is mild to moderate. On the other hand, if a person suffers from hospital acquired pneumonia, diagnosing the condition can be very difficult.

The first step when diagnosing pneumonia is to know the personal as well as medical history of the patient. Some of the important aspects that the pneumonia patient must be sure to tell his/ her doctor are: - if he/ she has suffered from any recent respiratory infection or if he/ she had such an infection; - if you have been in contact with anybody that has pneumonia or suffers from other problems of the respiratory system; - you should also tell your doctor if you are a smoker, or if you use any drugs or drink alcohol; even if you have quite, you should still tell your doctor because any information is very important in diagnosing pneumonia;

A second step in diagnosing pneumonia is a physical exam. The most used and also very important tool that is used to diagnose pneumonia is the stethoscope. With the help of this instrument, your doctor can listen to the sounds of your chest. The most suggestive sounds that can indicate pneumonia are: - rales: a bubbling sound; if these reales are heard on one side of your chest or when you are lying down, then they indicate that you have pneumonia; - rhonchi: unusual rumblings that indicate the presence of a very thick fluid; Another test used to diagnose pneumonia is percussion. Your doctor will tap your chest and if a dull thud is heard instead of a drum like sound, then you probably are suffering from pneumonia. In this case further tests must be done to proper diagnose pneumonia.

This is the easy part, because this is the way people that have community acquired pneumonia are diagnosed. However, when it comes to people that are possible suspects of hospital acquired pneumonia, then diagnosing this condition ca be very difficult. The main reason for this is that all these possible pneumonia patients have similar signs.

About the Author
You can find great content regarding pneumonia symptoms, pneumonia vaccine and many moreby visiting http://www.pneumonia-center.com/

Pneumonia and its causes, risk factors and diagnosis

by Groshan Fabiola

There are are mechanisms to protect your lungs from infection at each stage of the respiratory stage, but because you are very much exposed to viruses and bacteria sometimes these mechanisms fail in protect your respiratory system and you develop pneumonia. The infectious agents are attacked by white blood cells and all the process determins inflammation and difficult breathing.

Varius types of pneumonia include: Community-acquired pneumonia that is aquired at school, work or the gym which may be mistaken with the acute eosinophilic pneumonia developed by soldiers. Nosocomial pneumonia which occurs in hospitalized people, especially in those who are on a mechanical ventilator, are in the intensive care unit or have a compromised immune system. This type is severe especially in people with chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases or HIV/AIDS.

Aspiration pneumonia which has been described in a brain injury or other condition affects your normal gag reflex, when the content of the stomach is inhaled in your lungs after vomiting. Opportunistic pneumonia appears in people with compromised immune systems, with AIDS, sickle cell disease, other conditions that impair the immune system. For example, P. carinii pneumonia that almost never occurs inhealthy people.

Risk factors Persons aged 65 and older, very young children, persons with immune deficiency diseases as HIV/AIDS and chronic illnesses, removed spleen, impaired immune system. It has been proved that smoke and abuse alcohol are dangerous too. People who require mechanical ventilation are particularly at risk because the breathing tube, patients hospitalized in an intensive care unit, exposion to certain chemicals or pollutants, toxic fumes. Exposion to fungus as: Coccidioidomycosis, found in the US, Southern California and the desert Southwest or histoplasmosis moslty found in Ohio and Mississippi River valleys.

When to seek medical advice if you experience shortness of breath, chest pain that fluctuates, cough, an unexplained fever with chills and sweats. If you have heart failure or lung ailments, pneumonia can prove fatal in as little as 24 hours.

Screening and diagnosis After your doctor exams you and diagnosis the pneumonia you will be sent to chest X-rays and if the image is not clear enough then you may have a more sophisticated imaging test known as a computerized tomography (CT) scan, which takes a series of computer-directed X-rays. Blood tests are necesary and sometimes the examination of your phlegm.

Complications

In young and healthy people your pneumonia is treated with succes, but with the age and if your health is deteriorated: heart failure or lung ailments pneumonia is harder to cure. You may develop the following complications: Bacteremia if the infection invades your bloodstream this way it spreads quickly to the other organs, interferes with your ability to breathe because inflammates your lungs. Pleural effusion occurs when sometimes fluid accumulates between the thin, transparent membrane (pleura) covering your lungs and the chest wall.

About the Author
You can find great content regarding pneumonia causes, pneumonia symptoms and many more by visiting http://www.pneumonia-center.com/

Diagnose and treatment for pneumonia

by Groshan Fabiola

Pneumonia is the infection and inflammation of the small alveolus inside the lungs and of the surrounding tissues. Pneumonia can be a cause of death for persons with additional chronic conditions and to pneumonia sufferers in developing countries. Pneumonia cases occurred inside the community are usually caused by the germ Streptococcus Pneumoniae, while pneumonias appeared in hospitals or institutions are mostly caused by Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella or Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The severity of the symptoms and the required treatment depend a great deal on the type of the causing agent.

A series of factors can expose and predispose certain persons to developing pneumonia. Some medications, the age of the subject or some diseases can lead to the deprimation of the immune system and increase the susceptibility to pneumonia caused by abnormal microorganisms. Other conditions like alcoholism, smoking, diabetes, heart failure also predispose to pneumonia as well as extreme ages, debilitation, paralyzes or unconscious estates.

Pneumonia can appear after direct inhalation of infectious agents like bacteria, viruses or fungi or after the migration of the infection with the bloodstream from the initial localization. Pneumonia can occur after surgical interventions, after injuries especially chest injuries when the patient is unable to cough and mucus retention is possible. The aspiration pneumonia appears when different food, liquid or dust particles are inhaled from the mouth or when a bacterium is stuck inside the respiratory tract due to an obstruction.

The primer symptom of pneumonia is productive cough resulting in different amounts of mucus. Additional symptoms might be fever, chills, chest pains and breathing shortness. Auditory, pneumonia can be detected by the doctor listening to the patient's lungs with a stethoscope. Pneumonia produces particular sounds caused by the presence of inflammatory cells inside the air tubes usually filled with air. A certain diagnose can be established with a chest X-ray that shows usually a dense white patch in place of the involved tissue. Pneumonia diagnose can also be established by help of sputum and blood specimen culture.

Some types of pneumonia can be prevented by vaccination against the Influenza virus and against the bacterium Haemophillus Influenzae. Persons at high risk of developing pneumonia can prevent it by making physical exercises and breathing exercises to fasten the clearance of the secretions.

Bacterial pneumonia is treated with antibiotics and the medication is started even before the exact agent is identified in order to prevent possible complications. Some patients with breathing difficulties require additional oxygen and assisted breathing. Low severity cases can be treated at home by oral medication but more severe symptoms make hospitalization necessary and the intravenous administration of antibiotics.

Antibiotics have no benefic effect on pneumonias caused by viruses or fungi.


About the Author
Great resources can be found regarding walking pneumonia, walking pneumonia symptoms and many moreby visiting http://www.pneumonia-center.com/