What is Pneumonia?

Pneumonia an infection of lungs, that inflames air sacs in one or both lungs, which may fill with fluid. The infection can be life-threatening to anyone, but particularly to infants, children and people over 65. Many germs, such as bacteria, viruses, and fungi, can cause pneumonia. Understanding the cause of pneumonia is important because pneumonia treatment depends on its cause. As doctors said pneumonia is contagious. Pneumonia an infection of lungs, can spread to others through inhalation of airborne droplets from a sneeze or cough in case of both viral and bacterial pneumonia. Fungal pneumonia spreads through the environment from person to person.

Pneumonia Causes

There are five main causes of pneumonia:

• Bacteria
  
• Viruses
  
• Mycoplasma
  
• Other infectious agents, such as fungi—including pneumocystis
  
• Various chemicals
  

The flu virus is a common cause of viral pneumonia in adults. Other viruses that cause pneumonia include respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), rhinovirus, herpes simplex virus, severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) virus, and more.

Who are at risk of Pneumonia?

• Age younger than 2 years or older than 65
  
• Asthma
  
• Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
  
• Heart disease
  
• Diabetes
  
• Mechanical ventilation
  
• Smoking
  
• Immunocompromised conditions (such as HIV, cancer, organ transplantation, chemotherapy usage, steroid usage).
  

Signs and Symptoms of Pneumonia

Pneumonia symptoms can vary from mild to severe, depending on the type of pneumonia you have, your age and health.

The most common symptoms of pneumonia are:

• Cough (with some pneumonias you may cough up greenish or yellow mucus, or even bloody mucus)
  
• Fever, which may be mild or high (above 100.4 F)
  
• Shaking chills
  
• Shortness of breath, which may only occur when you climb stairs
  

Symptoms also can vary, depending on whether your pneumonia is bacterial or viral.

• In bacterial pneumonia, your temperature may rise as high as 105 degrees F. This pneumonia can cause profuse sweating, and rapidly increased breathing and pulse rate. Lips and nailbeds may have a bluish color due to lack of oxygen in the blood. A patient’s mental state may be confused or delirious.
  
• The initial symptoms of viral pneumonia are the same as influenza symptoms: fever, a dry cough, headache, muscle pain, and weakness. Within 12 to 36 hours, there is increasing breathlessness; the cough becomes worse and produces a small amount of mucus. There may be a high fever and there may be blueness of the lips.
  

Little ones who have a cold might have a fever for a few days. (Fever is rare in adults who have colds.)

Pneumonia Diagnosis

• Physical exam: Your doctor will listen to your lungs with a stethoscope. If you have pneumonia, your lungs may make crackling, bubbling, and rumbling sounds when you inhale. You also may be wheezing, and it may be hard to hear sounds of breathing in some areas of your chest.
  

• Chest X-ray (if your doctor suspects pneumonia)
  

Some patients may need other tests, including:

• Blood test to check white blood cell count and to try to know the germ which may be in your blood as well
  
• Arterial blood gases to see if enough oxygen is getting into your blood from the lungs
  
• CT (or CAT) scan of the chest to get a better view of the lungs
  
• Sputum tests to look for the organism (that can detected in the mucus collected from you after a deep cough) causing your symptoms
  
• Pleural fluid culture if there is fluid in the space surrounding the lungs
  
• Pulse oximetry to measure how much oxygen is moving through your bloodstream, done by simply attaching a small clip to your finger for a brief time
  
• Bronchoscopy, a procedure used to look into the lungs’ airways, which would be performed if you are hospitalized and antibiotics are not working well
  

Pneumonia an infection of lungs – Prevention

• Lower your pneumonia risk with vaccines. Many vaccines can prevent infection by bacteria or viruses that may cause pneumonia, including:
  
  • Pneumococcal conjugate (PCV)
    
  • Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib)
    
  • Pertussis (whooping cough)
    
  • Varicella (chickenpox)
    
  • Measles
    
  • Seasonal and 2009 H1N1 influenza (flu) vaccines
    

  Vaccines mostly available in the hospitals are:
  

1. Prevnar 13
   
2. Synflorix
   

Dose- 6th,10th, 14th week ( For Kids)

• Practicing good hygiene and health habits help prevent pneumonia
  
• Breastfeeding during the first six months is critical in preventing pneumonia
  
• Quit smoking
  
• Reducing environmental risk factors, such as overcrowding in homes, exposure to tobacco smoke and indoor air pollution are also important protective measures