Pneumonia

Pneumonia is an inflammation of the lungs that is mostly caused by bacterial infections but can also be caused by viral infections. It is the most common reason for deaths in developing and in industrial nations.

In Kenya, pneumonia is responsible for approximately one in five children’s deaths. It claims approximately 8,000 to 10,000 children’s lives annually.

Pneumonia takes about two to four weeks before healing. For small children and older people people with lung and heart conditions, the infection will take longer and even probably require hospitalization due to the severity of their conditions.

As mentioned earlier, pneumonia is caused by vectors such as bacteria and viruses, and in patients with a reduced immune system, pneumonia can also be caused by fungi.

Some of the factors that increase susceptibility to pneumonia infections include:

• age factors such as young babies and older people
• seasonal factors like rainy and cold seasons
• Prior medical history such as asthma in COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease),

Pneumonia can be categorized into:

• community-acquired pneumonia: the most common bacteria are pneumococcal, and Haemophilus influenza, others include: Chlamydophila pneumococcal, Mycoplasma pneumococcal, Legionella, Staphylococcus aureus, and Mycobacterium tuberculosis.

-Viruses such as: Influenza, RSV, and Corona Virus

• Hospital-acquired pneumonia: the most common bacteria for these are Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcal.
• Pneumonia on patients with a reduced immune system.

mostly caused by minor bacteria and fungi

• Neonatal Pneumonia

Let’s look at signs and symptoms of pneumonia:

• Fever
• Coughing up yellow or green mucus
• Chest pains and pains while breathing
• Aching of the body, joints and headaches
• Exhaustion
• Loss of appetite
• Wheezing while breathing
• Confusion and hallucinations in older patients or due to certain viral infections like influenza

Now that we know the signs and symptoms to look out for, let’s dive into how we diagnose pneumonia:

• Clerking: this is when the doctor asks general questions about your cough, including when the symptoms started and any prior medical history
• the doctor checking for signs like strenuous breathing and blueness of the lips and tongue, this is due to less oxygen intake in the lungs.
• The doctor will do a physical examination using his stethoscope to determine the different sounds of the lungs while breathing
• Blood tests: this helps to determine between a viral and a bacterial infection. In the case of a bacterial infection, the white blood cells and inflammation parameters are mostly high. In the case of a viral infection, the white blood cells and inflammation parameters will be normal or just very slightly elevated. In other cases, one could have both a viral and a bacterial infection, this is what you would call a superinfection in medical terms.
• X-ray: this helps to determine where exactly the pneumonia is located; for example, it could be on both sides of the lungs or just on one side.

Now that we know the different diagnostic steps, let’s have a look at how he treats pneumonia.

• Bacterial infections are always treated with antibiotics.
• Viral infections do not require antibiotics. Mostly, this kind of pneumonia just requires anti-inflammatory treatment with medications such as Ibuprofen, and paracetamol, and enough fluid intake.
• In case of a superinfection with a bacterium and a virus, antibacterial therapy will be required.
• In case of a fungal infection, antifungal therapy is required.

Please note that not all kinds of pneumonia require antibiotics, hence the need to draw blood to differentiate between a bacterial, viral, or fungal infection. This is crucial to avoid the high rise of resistance in antibiotic therapies.

We do say prevention is better than cure, so how can we reduce the frequency in which pneumonia occurs in our general population? The main method of pneumonia prevention, especially in small children and older patients is vaccination.

-small babies and children can be vaccinated against Haemophilus and pneumococcal disease at the age of two months. Older patients as well as patients with a reduced immune system can also prevent the severity of pneumonia by getting vaccines against the named bacteria above.

For more medical gems, keep at Doki’s Advice.