Pneumoniae Research Paper

Pneumonia is an acute infection of the lungs, it can be caused by a variety of organisms entering the body – including bacteria, viruses or fungi. The infection causes an inflammation of the alveoli (air sacs) of the lungs and may result in the alveoli filling with fluid or other purulent material (Mayo Clinic, 2016). An accumulation of fluid within alveoli and portions of the lungs, can reduce the ability of the lungs to allow for oxygen diffusion across the alveoli walls. If oxygen saturation is low, it can cause the body’s cells to not work effectively. Therefore, the risk of the infection spreading through the body is increased – it is due to this reason, that pneumonia can be life-threatening (American Lung Foundation, 2016). Pneumonia

Antibiotics are inarguably one of the greatest advances in medical science of the past century. Although the first natural antibiotic Penicillin was not discovered until 1928 by Scottish biologist Alexander Flemming, evidence exists that certain plant and mold growths were used to treat infections in ancient Egypt, ancient India, and classical Greece (Forrest, 1982). In our modern world with the advent of synthetic chemistry synthetic antibiotics like Erithromycin and its derivative Azithromycin have been developed. Antibiotics have many uses including the treatment of bacterial and protozoan infection, in surgical operations and prophylactically to prevent the development of an infection. Through these applications, antibiotics have saved countless lives across the world and radically altered the field of medicine. Though a wonderful and potentially lifesaving tool, antibiotic use is not without its disadvantages. Mankind has perhaps been too lax in regulation and too liberal in application of antibiotics and growing antibiotic resistance is the price we must now pay. A recent study showed that perhaps 70% of bacterial infections acquired during hospital visits in the United States are resistant to at least one class of antibiotic (Leeb, 2004). Bacteria are not helpless and their genetic capabilities have allowed them to take advantage of society’s overuse of antibiotics, allowing them to develop

Furthermore, in the past 10-15 years, Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) has emerged as an increasingly important infectious disease worldwide. C. difficile is an antibiotic-associated bacteria that causes asymptomatic

Pneumonia is an inflammation of the lung which results into an excess of fluid or pus accumulating into the alveoli of the lung. Pneumonia impairs gas exchange which leads to hypoxemia and is acquire by inhaling a contagious organism or an irritating agent. (Ignatavicius & Workman, 2013). Fungal, bacteria and viruses are the most common organisms that can be inhale. Pneumonia could be community-acquired or health care associated. Community –acquired pneumonia (CAP) occurs out of a healthcare facility while health care associated pneumonia (HAP) is acquired in a healthcare facility. HAP are more resistant to antibiotic and patients on ventilators and those receiving kidney dialysis have a higher risk factor. Infants, children and the elderly also have a higher risk of acquiring pneumonia due to their immune system inability to fight the virus. Pneumonia can also be classified as aspiration pneumonia if it arises by inhaling saliva, vomit, food or drink into the lungs. Patients with abnormal gag reflex, dysphagia, brain injury, and are abusing drug or alcohol have a higher risk of aspiration pneumonia (Mayo Clinic, 2013). In the case of patient E.O., this patient had rhonchi in the lower lobe and the upper lobe sound was coarse and diminished. Signs and symptoms of pneumonia include difficulty breathing, chest pain, wheezing, fever, headache, chills, cough, confusion, pain in muscle or

Over using antibiotics may lead towards developing harmful side effects and future antibiotic-resistant infections. An antibiotic-resistant infection is Clostridium difficile (C. difficile) which can cause life-threatening diarrhea. These infections mostly occur in people who have had both recent medical care and antibiotics. Often, C. difficile infections occur in hospitalized or recently hospitalized patients. Antibiotics do not combat infections caused by viruses such as common colds, flu, sore throats, bronchitis, and many other sinus and ear infections. Instead of consuming excessive antibiotic medications, symptom relief might be the best treatment option for viral infections.

Pneumonia is known as the “single greatest cause of death due to infection in children worldwide” (Mcculloch and Patel 2016, pg.1). This infection targets infants and children, due to their weak immune systems, as they are not full developed yet (Unicef and World Health Organization 2006, pg. 7). The most vulnerable children to the disease are either undernourished or already suffering from a prior illness. The symptoms of pneumonia vary, if caused by bacteria then the child will show signs of a

An article By Moran, Rothman, and Volturo (2013) examined the emergency management of community acquired bacterial pneumonia (CAP) and compared new aspects of treatment to the 2007 Infectious Disease Society of America/American Thoracic Society Guideline (Moran, Rothman, & Volturo, 2013). S. pneumonia was found be the cause of the most community acquired pneumonia, and S. aureus was a close second with its increase of incidence (Moran et al., 2013). Community acquired methicillin-resistant S. aureus is now the most common organism found in soft tissue and skin infections (Moran, Rothman, & Volturo, 2013). An epidemiologic study revealed that 14% of patients with MRSA all had resistance to clindamycin, ciprofloxacin, erythromycin, and levofloxacin; but none were resistant to trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole (Moran et al., 2013).

Streptococcus pneumoniae is a gram-positive bacteria that is a facultative anaerobe. This strain of bacteria can cause five different bacterial diseases. Streptococcus pneumoniae can cause pneumonia (an infection of the lungs), otitis media (an infection of the middle ear), sinus infections, bacteremia (an infection of the bloodstream), and meningitis (an infection of the covering around the brain and spinal cord). The most common disease it causes is pneumonia called pneumococcal pneumonia (Travelers' Health). Pneumonia is an infection of the lungs that causes the lungs to fill with fluid. This makes it difficult to breathe causing less oxygen to go to the bloodstream making this

pneumoniae and there chemotactic signals and the host cell’s alternate pathway, invade the alveoli. Also red blood cells are recruited to this site. In the third stage, mostly neutrophils are packed into the alveoli and very few bacteria remain. In the final stage, macrophages eliminate the remaining residue from the inflammatory response. As one can see, the damage which is done to the lung is largely a result of the host’s inflammatory response, which causes the build up of fluids in the lungs. If S. pneumoniae is allowed to persist in the lungs it can then invade the blood, which causes bacteremia. When in the blood it can traverse the blood-brain barrier and infect the meninges, which results in meningitis. S. pneumoniae is also associated with diseases in other parts of the respiratory tract including the paranasal sinuses, which is better known as sinusitis, and the middle ear can become infected, which is known as otitis media. It has also been known to cause peritonitis, an inflammation of the peritoneum, the membrane that lines the abdominal wall, and it is also implicated in causing arthritis.

Streptococcus pneumoniae (S. pneumoniae) is an important human pathogen. It causes severe and invasive infections, such as pneumonia, septicemia, otitis media, and meningitis, especially in children, the elderly, and immuno-compromised patients [1,2,3]. S. pneumoniae initially colonize the nasopharynx and may persist for months without causing illness, forming specialized structures called biofilms [4,5]. Pneumococci from these biofilms can migrate to other sterile anatomical sites, causing severe biofilm associated infections such as pneumonia and otitis media [6,7,8]. The planktonic bacteria from these biofilm-associated infections can migrate to other sterile sites, such as the blood stream, causing bacteremia, or to the brain,

Pneumonia is an illness of the lower respiratory tract in which the lungs become inflamed and congested and alveolar spaces are filled with fluid and cells-polymorphs and lymphocytes (Mandell L.A). It is an inflammatory condition of the lung and it is one of the most serious infections, causing two million deaths annually among the young and elderly. Pneumonia is the largest killer, accounting for 28% to 34% of all child deaths below five years of age in low-income countries and is an important cause of mortality in the elderly in high-income countries (Suárez).

The overuse of antibiotics has been a problem for well over a decade. This misuse leads to many nonvisible problems arising within the human population. As the use of antibiotics increases, the number of antibiotic resistant bacteria also increases. When bacteria become resistant to an antibiotic, another antibiotic must be used to try and kill it and the cycle becomes vicious. Michael Martin, Sapna Thottathil, and Thomas Newman stated that antimicrobial resistance is, “an increasingly serious threat to global public health that requires action across all government sectors and society” (2409).

M. pneumoniae is generally referred to as primary atypical or walking pneumonia because the symptoms are not as sever as pneumonia. The symptoms include a dry hacking cough, fever, and headache. The symptoms will last for about 2 to 3 weeks. M. pneumoniae affects people worldwide. Typically only 33 % of people who have M. pneumoniae will get atypical pneumonia. The majority, 77 %, will come down with an upper tract infection (tracheaobronchitis). (Pulmonary Disorders pg 609) M. pneumoniae is transmitted through aerosol droplets. The bacterium is capable of infecting anyone at any time but it has a pattern of coming in the fall and winter and causing an outbreak every 4 to 8 years, although more tight communities occur more frequently. The pathogen rarely occurs on children less than 4 years of age. Since the bacterium lacks a cell wall, B-lactums are futile against them. The body’s immune system is responsible for killing the pathogen. There were 2 million cases in the US with 100,000 requiring hospitalization. The mortality rate is very low with only occasional fatalities among the elderly and sickle cell anemia persons. ( ).

The clinical manifestations of pneumonia will be different according to the causative organism and the patient’s underlying conditions and/or comorbidities (Smeltzer, et al). Some of the manifestations are

Pneumonia is an inflammation or infection of the lungs most commonly caused by a bacteria or virus. Pneumonia can also be caused by inhaling vomit or other foreign substances. In all cases, the lungs' air sacs fill with pus , mucous, and other liquids and cannot function properly. This means oxygen cannot reach the blood and the cells of the body.