Symptoms And Symptoms Of Pneumonia

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

This paper explores Pneumonia and the respiratory disease process associated with bacterial and viral pathogens most commonly located in the lung. The paper examines the process, symptoms and treatments most commonly viewed in patient cases of Pneumonia. My goal is to educate the reader and to warn of the

Pneumonia is a disease that affects the respiratory system. Specifically, it is an inflammation of the lungs that can be caused by fungi, bacteria, viruses and parasites. Microscopic sacs in the lungs (Alveoli) become inflamed and fill up with fluid, which causes symptoms such as cough, fever, chills and trouble breathing. It is a lung disease that kills thousands every year and hospitalizes many more. Pneumonia is more serious and can be deadly for infants and elderly. This disease has personally affected me when my son was hospitalized with it for 5 days. He was only 10 months old at the time and was admitted with diagnosis of Pneumonia, low oxygen and dehydration.

File, T. (2017). Treatment of community-acquired pneumonia in adults in the outpatient setting. Retrieved from https://www.uptodate.com/contents/treatment-of-community-acquired-pneumonia-in-adults-in-the-outpatient-setting?source=search_result&search=treating%20community-acquired%20pneumonia%20in%20adults&selectedTitle=2~150#H11

BB, 86, presented to EMCH with pneumonia and a history of COPD and heart failure. The chief complaint for admission was shortness of breath and chest pain. She was put on many medications to help her conditions. A patient with COPD has weakened lungs already so getting control over her pneumonia was that much more important. General overall health is key to preventing infections in COPD patients (Faris, 2012).

Cystic fibrosis causes the alveoli to be filled with secretions that the patient cannot cough up or eliminate. The diffusion from the lungs to the blood is decreased because of the secretion filled alveoli. When the PaO2 is less than 60 mm Hg, the carotid bodies are triggered and send an afferent signal from the body to the brain and producing the feeling of dyspnea.

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

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.

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).

Jane Peterson has a principle diagnosis of acute pneumonia. Pneumonia is characterised as an inflammatory infection of the lung tissue, specifically affecting the alveoli (“Pneumonia”, 2017). The infection may affect one or both the lungs and can be caused by a virus, bacteria and even fungi in people with compromised immune systems (“Pneumonia”, 2017). Additionally, exposure to a sufficient portion of organisms, other risk factors also contribute to the development of pneumonia, such as cigarette smoke, malnutrition, abnormal anatomical structure and difficulty swallowing (Gale Encyclopedia of Children’s Health, 2015).

mortality rate. Bacteria, virus and fungi are the primary cause of pneumonia.8 It is referred to as

Pneumonia is a serious infection in the lungs that causes illness in all ages and can be mild to severe, to the extent of causing death. Pneumonia is characterized by inflammation of the alveoli in one or both lungs that leads to fluid/pus filled the alveoli and is commonly a complication from respiratory infections like the Flu, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and Asthma, just to name a few. Though it is most serious for older adults, babies, people with impaired immune systems and people suffering from other diseases; anyone can get this infection even healthy young people (Crosta, 2015).

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

Most pneumonias are caused by bacterial infections.The most common infectious cause of pneumonia in the United States is the bacteria Streptococcus pneumoniae. Bacterial pneumonia can attack anyone. The most common cause of bacterial pneumonia in adults is a bacteria called

The patient's overall symptoms and lab work suggest that she is suffering from hospital acquired pneumonia. Currently the patient is presenting a moist chesty cough. Additionally, her heart rate is elevated, her oxygenation is low, and her RR is high. She has a raised white blood cell count, which indicates infection. Finally, the patient is acting confused and disoriented, which can be the direct result of a lack of oxygenation to the brain. All of these symptoms point to pneumonia (Torres, 1999).