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It is the most common bacterial pneumonia found in adults, the most common type of community-acquired pneumonia, and one of the common types of pneumococcal infection. The estimated number of Americans with pneumococcal pneumonia is 900,000 annually, with almost 400,000 cases hospitalized and fatalities accounting for 5-7% of these cases. [2]
Pneumonia fills the lung's alveoli with fluid, hindering oxygenation. The alveolus on the left is normal, whereas the one on the right is full of fluid from pneumonia. Pneumonia frequently starts as an upper respiratory tract infection that moves into the lower respiratory tract. [55] It is a type of pneumonitis (lung inflammation). [56]
[13] [15] Pneumonia is also the leading cause of death in children less than five years of age in low income countries. [15] The most common cause of pneumonia is pneumococcal bacteria, Streptococcus pneumoniae accounts for 2/3 of bacteremic pneumonias. [16] Invasive pneumococcal pneumonia has a mortality rate of around 20%. [14]
Instruct the patient to inhale and observe the movement of the thumbs on the patient's back. Repeat the process with each hand on the lower margin of the ribcage at the front of the chest to further observe chest expansion. Asymmetry in chest expansion may be due to disease of lung or pleura. [14]
Additional consideration is given to the treatment setting; most patients are cured by oral medication, while others must be hospitalized for intravenous therapy or intensive care. Current treatment guidelines recommend a beta-lactam, like amoxicillin, and a macrolide, like azithromycin or clarithromycin, or a quinolone, such as levofloxacin.
Bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL), also known as bronchoalveolar washing, is a diagnostic method of the lower respiratory system in which a bronchoscope is passed through the mouth or nose into an appropriate airway in the lungs, with a measured amount of fluid introduced and then collected for examination.
The differential diagnosis includes other types of lung disease that cause similar symptoms and show similar abnormalities on chest radiographs. Some of these diseases cause fibrosis, scarring or honeycomb change. The most common considerations include: chronic hypersensitivity pneumonitis; non-specific interstitial pneumonia; sarcoidosis
Pneumonia occurs more often in people who are using a respirator. This machine helps them breathe. Hospital-acquired pneumonia can also be spread by health care workers, who can pass germs from their hands or clothes from one person to another. This is why hand-washing, wearing gloves, and using other safety measures is so important in the ...