How is pneumonia manifested?

The first signs of pneumonia in children and adults

Pneumonia is a disease that has an infectious origin and is characterized by inflammation of the lung tissue in the event of provoking physical or chemical factors such as:

Complications after viral diseases (influenza, ARVI), atypical bacteria (chlamydia, mycoplasma, legionella)
Effects on the respiratory system of various chemical agents - poisonous fumes and gases (see. chlorine in household chemicals is hazardous to health)
Radioactive radiation, to which infection is attached
Allergic processes in the lungs - allergic cough, COPD, bronchial asthma
Thermal factors - hypothermia or burns of the respiratory tract
Inhalation of liquids, food or foreign bodies can cause aspiration pneumonia.

The cause of the development of pneumonia is the emergence of favorable conditions for the multiplication of various pathogenic bacteria in the lower respiratory tract. The original causative agent of pneumonia is the aspergillus mushroom, which was the culprit of the sudden and mysterious deaths of researchers of the Egyptian pyramids. Owners of domestic birds or lovers of urban pigeons can get chlamydial pneumonia.

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For today, all pneumonia is divided into:

out-of-hospital, arising under the influence of various infectious and non-infectious agents outside the walls of hospitals
hospital, which cause hospital-acquired microbes, often very resistant to traditional antibiotic treatment.

The frequency of detection of various infectious agents in community-acquired pneumonia is presented in the table.

Causative agent	Average% detection
Streptococcus is the most frequent pathogen. Pneumonia caused by this pathogen is the leader in the frequency of death from pneumonia.	3, %
Mycoplasma - affects most children, young people.	1, %
Chlamydia - chlamydial pneumonia is typical for people of young and middle age.	1, %
Legionellae - a rare pathogen, affects weakened people and is the leader after streptococcus by frequency of deaths (infection in rooms with artificial ventilation - shopping centers, airports)	, %
Hemophilus rod - causes pneumonia in patients with chronic bronchial and lung diseases, as well as in smokers.	, %
Enterobacteria are rare pathogens, affecting mainly patients with renal / hepatic, cardiac insufficiency, diabetes mellitus.	, %
Staphylococcus is a frequent pathogen of pneumonia in the elderly population, and complications in patients after the flu.	, %
Other pathogens	, %
The causative agent is not installed	3, %

When the diagnosis is confirmed, depending on the type of pathogen, the patient's age, the presence of concomitant diseases, a corresponding therapy, in severe cases, treatment should be performed in a hospital setting, with mild forms of inflammation, hospitalization of the patient is not is required.

Characteristic first signs of pneumonia, the vastness of the inflammatory process, acute development and danger of serious complications in untimely treatment - are the main reasons for the urgent circulation of the population for medical help. At present, a sufficiently high level of medical development, improved diagnostic methods, and a huge the list of antibacterials of a wide spectrum of action has considerably lowered a death rate from an inflammation of lungs (cm. antibiotics for bronchitis).

Typical first signs of pneumonia in adults

The main symptom of the development of pneumonia is a cough, usually it is first dry, obtrusive and persistent. protivokashlevye, expectorants with a dry cough), but in rare cases cough at the beginning of the disease can be rare and not strong. Then, as the inflammation develops, the cough becomes pneumatic with pneumonia, with a discharge of mucopurulent sputum (yellow-green color).

Any catarrhal virus disease should not last more than 7 days, and a sharp deterioration of the condition later 4-7 days after the onset of an acute respiratory viral infection or influenza indicates the onset of an inflammatory process in the lower respiratory ways.

Body temperature can be very high up to 39-40C, and can remain subfebrile 3, -3, C (with atypical pneumonia). Therefore, even with a low body temperature, coughing, weakness and other signs of malaise, you should definitely consult a doctor. Caution should be a repeated temperature jump after a light gap during the course of a viral infection.

If the patient has a very high temperature, one of the signs of inflammation in the lungs is the inefficiency of antipyretic drugs.

Pain with deep breath and cough. The lung itself does not hurt, as it is devoid of pain receptors, but involvement in the pleura process gives a pronounced pain syndrome.

In addition to cold symptoms, the patient has dyspnea and pale skin.
General weakness, increased sweating, chills, decreased appetite are also characteristic for intoxication and the onset of the inflammatory process in the lungs.

If such symptoms appear either in the midst of a cold, or a few days after the improvement, these may be the first signs of pneumonia. The patient should immediately consult a doctor to undergo a complete examination:

To pass blood tests - general and biochemical
To make a roentgenography of a thorax, if necessary and a computer tomography
Sputum for culture and sensitivity of the pathogen to antibiotics
Sputum for culture and microscopic determination of mycobacterium tuberculosis

The main first signs of pneumonia in children

Symptoms of pneumonia in children have several characteristics. Attentive parents may suspect the development of pneumonia with the following discomforts in the child:

Temperature

Body temperature above 38C, lasting for more than three days, not knocked down by antipyretics, there may also be a high temperature of up to 3, especially in young children. At the same time, all signs of intoxication are manifested - weakness, increased sweating, lack of appetite. Small children (as well as elderly people), can not give high temperature fluctuations with pneumonia. This is due to imperfect thermoregulation and immaturity of the immune system.

Breath

There is frequent shortness of breath: in children up to 2 months of age, 60 breaths per minute, up to 1 year, 50 breaths, after a year, 40 breaths per minute. Often the child spontaneously tries to lie down on one side. Parents may notice another sign of pneumonia in the child, if you undress the baby, then when breathing from the patient lung can be noticed the retraction of the skin in between the ribs and the lag in the process of breathing one side of the chest. There may be irregular breathing rhythm, with periodic stops of breathing, changes in the depth and frequency of breathing. In infants, shortness of breath is characterized by the fact that the child begins to nod his head in time with the breath, the baby can stretch his lips and inflate his cheeks, foamy discharge from the nose and mouth can appear.

Atypical pneumonia

Inflammation of the lungs caused by mycoplasma and chlamydia differ in that first the disease passes like a cold, there is a dry cough, runny nose, swelling in the throat, but the presence of dyspnea and a stably high temperature should alert parents to the development pneumonia.

Character of cough

Because of the perspiration in the throat, only coughing can appear first, then the cough becomes dry and painful, which is amplified by crying, feeding the baby. Later, the cough becomes wet.

Behavior of the child

Children with pneumonia become capricious, whiny, sluggish, they are disturbed by sleep, sometimes can completely refuse to eat, and also to appear diarrhea and vomiting, in babies - regurgitation and rejection of breasts.

Blood test

In the general analysis of blood, changes are detected that indicate an acute inflammatory process - increased ESR, leukocytosis, neutrophilia. Shift of the leukoformula to the left with increasing stab and segmented leukocytes. In viral pneumonia, along with high ESR, there is an increase in leukocytes due to lymphocytes.

With timely access to a doctor, adequate therapy and proper care for a sick child or adult, pneumonia does not lead to serious complications. Therefore, at the slightest suspicion of pneumonia, the patient should be given medical care as soon as possible.

zdravotvet.ru

Symptoms and signs of pneumonia in adults

Is pneumonia dangerous for adults?

Pneumonia is an acute infectious disease that occurs with inflammation of the lung tissue. Inflammation of the lungs remains one of the leading causes of death from respiratory diseases, despite a giant leap in the development of medicine. Symptoms of pneumonia in adults, children and the elderly, as before, make doctors worry about the fate of patients.

In 2006, 591493 cases of pneumonia were detected in Russia, which amounted to 4 ‰ among adults & 8 years. But these figures from official reports do not fully reflect the true picture. The calculations of scientists show that the real incidence of pneumonia in Russia reaches 15 ‰. The absolute number of cases of pneumonia is 1500000 people every year. According to statistics in 2006, pneumonia and its complications claimed the lives of 3, 70 Russian adults.

If elderly patients & g; 0 years there is a chronic concomitant pathology (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, cancer; alcoholism; diseases of the liver, kidneys, heart and blood vessels; diabetes), then with severe pneumonia, mortality increases to 30%. The highest mortality from pneumonia in Russia is registered in adult men of working age. Typical for Russians, the risk factor for the fatal outcome of pneumonia is later seeking medical help.

Signs that increase the risk of death from pneumonia in adults:

Male.
Severe hypothermia before the disease.
Dyspnea with respiratory rate & g; 8 in 1 min.
Violation of the mental state of the patient.
Concomitant diseases - chronic heart failure, decreased immunity, diabetes, atherosclerosis of the heart vessels, oncological processes, chronic renal failure.
Low blood pressure
Low body temperature

If patients who died of pneumonia knew the first signs of a dangerous illness and turned to the doctor on time, their lives could be saved.

The first signs and symptoms, indicating an inflammation of the lungs:

Suddenness of onset of the disease;
fever (a sharp increase in body temperature & 8 ° C);
chills (muscle trembling);
chest pain when coughing and deep breathing;
dry or unproductive cough with sputum rusty;
shortness of breath - a feeling of lack of air;
general weakness and fatigue;
heavy sweats at night and at the slightest load.

These signs in a person who has fallen ill with a "cold" should alert his relatives, as he is quite likely to diagnose pneumonia. If you suspect an inflammation of the lungs, consult a doctor.

Objective signs of the disease

The doctor, examining the patient, reveals the objective symptoms of pneumonia:

Dullness of sound when tapping over the affected places of the lungs;
hard breathing over the inflamed part of the lung tissue;
listening to wheezing over the site of inflammation.

The main rule that confirms pneumonia is the asymmetry of objective findings, that is, the presence of pneumonia symptoms in only one lung. After the examination, the doctor will prescribe an X-ray of the chest.

X-ray symptoms of pneumonia

The main radiographic evidence of pneumonia is local dimming of the lung in a patient who has symptoms of inflammation of the lower respiratory tract.

X-rays for suspected pneumonia are performed by all patients: children and adults. This mandatory rule is associated with the risk of complications of pneumonia with a delay in the appointment of antibiotics. The consequences of procrastination can be fatal.

Treatment of inflammation of the lungs

The main component of treatment, determining the prognosis, is the correct choice of antimicrobial agent - antibiotic. Treatment of mild cases of inflammation of the lungs in adults can be carried out at home. In addition to antimicrobial drugs, the patient needs a bed rest for the time of fever, abundant warm drink and adequate nutrition. If the patient coughs up phlegm, then cough can be alleviated with the help of expectorants and compresses on the chest.

Diet for a patient with pneumonia is in frequent fractional nutrition, the food should be easily assimilated and fully-fledged in composition.

In case of a serious condition, the patient is treated in a hospital (hospital).

After recovering from pneumonia, the patient is observed at the clinic therapist for 1 year.

Prevention of disease

To prevent the disease will help vaccinate against pneumococcus - the main culprit of the disease. If the vaccine is contraindicated to a patient at risk, you can use drugs such as "vaccine-tablets." Such drugs contain surface proteins of microbial pathogens that enhance immunity. The action of such immunomodulators is regarded as "grafting only without injection. For a competent choice of treatment and prevention of pneumonia, a doctor's consultation is necessary.

ingalin.ru

The main symptoms of pneumonia in infants

Pneumonia in the infant, the symptoms of which are diverse, has mechanisms of development that are very different from a similar ailment in an adult patient. If there are signs of pneumonia in the child, it is necessary to urgently lead him to the hospital, otherwise complications may occur, it will be possible to cope with it with great difficulty.If the disease is neglected in infants, the disease can lead to death.

The causes of pneumonia in young children

The main lesion occurs with various infections, which can be divided into the following types:

Disease of bacterial character.
Viral infection of the lung.
Penetration of fungi into the body.
Various physical and chemical causes.
Drug poisoning.

In young children, the main damaging factor is pneumococci. The incubation period of this pathogen is 2-3 days. The infection clinic is manifested in a sharp increase in the child's body temperature to 37-41 ° C. At the same time, drowsiness or general malaise may occur. If you seek medical help on time, the disease will be cured within 2 weeks.

For babies and babies, the most dangerous are the so-called Legionella pneumonia. Their incubation period reaches 4 days. If the disease is not treated in time, then in the lungs focal lesions occur, and respiratory failure develops. Often in such cases, the child dies.

The individual characteristics of each child also play a big role in the course of the disease. If the baby from birth has a narrow cage of the thoracic region, then this can complicate the treatment, since it contributes to the rapid development of the disease. There is a lack of breathing, which leads to a deterioration in the child's condition.

How is the disease in premature babies?

At such kids most often all depends on the assimilation of mother's milk. If there are no complications, together with this product, the right amount of immunoglobulins gets into the body of the child, which forms the first line of protection against viral infections. With the development of pneumonia in this case, all the processes go in the same way as they manifest in children of the normal period of wear. With the timely detection of disease, the course of therapy, such children recover within 2 weeks.

If doctors deal with atypical forms of the disease, then everything is considerably complicated. Most often, the child develops a respiratory failure.

Preterm infants suffer with a general intoxication of all body systems, which leads to various pathological changes and often the death of a small patient.

Symptoms that characterize pneumonia in infants and newborns

The main signs of the disease during this period of the child's development:

The body temperature of a small patient rises.
There is a cyanosis on the skin.
There is a sharp increase in the rate of sputum accumulation.
The child is tormented by a persistent cough.
The kid is often irritated and almost always crying.

It is necessary to mark the first signs of the disease in time and begin timely therapy. If this is not done in time, serious complications can arise that will lead to the need to use strong antimicrobials. And this, in turn, can lead to the appearance of a dysbiosis in a child.

The development of pneumonia in a newborn and infants begins with an incubation period that lasts no more than 4 days. During this period, in young children, the disease flows secretly, without any external manifestations. Therefore, at the first suspicion of pneumonia in the infant, the symptoms of which have not yet manifested itself, parents should show the child to the doctor.

This should be done because children of the first period of life do not have a formed system of immunity, and local protection works only at the expense of immunoglobulin, obtained through the mother's milk. If the baby is on artificial feeding, then this measure of protection is absent and, therefore, any infection can cause serious harm to the child.

How to recognize the signs of viral pneumonia in a child?

If the baby has congenital pneumonia, then her symptoms usually appear after a few days. The disease begins with a cough and a sudden increase in body temperature, which indicates the respiratory nature of the disease and can lead to medical error. If the treatment is not given in time with antimicrobial agents, the following symptoms will start to appear:

The child refuses to eat.
Constantly capricious.
His rapid and strong breathing is heard.
The baby always cries.

All of the above signs appear due to the high temperature. With the chest X-ray, such a child clearly sees foci of inflammation in the form of segments. If the child is premature, the size of the lesion is much greater.

Such a patient should be hospitalized, and he needs to undergo intensive antimicrobial therapy. But we must be cautious, since the baby can show dysbiosis and other complications.

Parents can determine the illness of the child by themselves. The symptoms that should alert them are the following:

It takes breath because of asphyxiation (lack of air), the blueing of the skin begins.
It is necessary to pay attention to the increased tearfulness of the baby.
The child's temperature can rise to 40 ° C. Therefore, we must take him to a doctor.
The baby has a decrease in the threshold of reflexes, for example, respiratory or sucking.
The patient can suddenly drop weight, and the baby stops eating. There may be attacks of vomiting due to changes in the intestines of the child that occurred under the influence of pneumonia.
The cardiovascular system responds to the disease by worsening blood flow in the so-called small circle. This is due to infiltrates in the tissues of the lungs. Pathology in the baby can be determined by the swelling of the feet and blue skin. The normal operation of the heart muscle may be disrupted.
Pneumonia on the central nervous system of the child works in such a way that some children begin to become overly excited, while others, on the contrary, become sluggish and slow.
The main sign that adults can detect in a child with viral infection of the lungs is a sharp decrease in appetite. In young children, this can manifest as diarrhea, nausea, or vomiting, as microbes affect not only the lungs, but also the intestines of the child.

How to recognize the inflammation of the lungs in a small child in time?

This can be done on the basis of the following features:

In infants and babies, the elevated body temperature (about 40 ° C) lasts more than 3 consecutive days.
The child coughs, and moisture is released in large quantities.
The breathing of a small patient is gaining momentum. There may be a so-called groaning.
The skin begins to turn blue on the face and in the area between the nose and lips.
The kid refuses to eat.
There are signs of a cold.

In all of the above cases, you need to call a doctor at home or take the child to the hospital. There experts will check the baby's lungs and, if necessary, hospitalize him. The most accurate way to determine pneumonia is chest x-ray, and it can only be done in a clinic.

In newborns, recognizing pneumonia is a difficult task, but you need to start treatment as early as possible. Often this disease is caused by chlamydia. These are organisms that penetrate cells that are difficult to destroy by antiviral therapy.

Diagnosis of the disease in clinical settings

First, doctors listen to the child's lungs, tap his chest. Then a series of analyzes are carried out:

The blood is being examined.
Biochemical data are taken.
X-ray the chest of the child.

When examining the blood, attention is drawn to the increased number of leukocytes that arise when a child's virus is damaged.

Biochemical parameters of blood are used to determine the effect of pathology on other organs and systems of the organism of a small patient. An increase in the level of uric acid may indicate a variety of disorders in the functioning of the kidneys. Radiography shows areas of damage in the patient's lungs and enables physicians to assess the extent of the disease.

respiratoria.ru

Pneumonia without fever

Pneumonia is an acute infectious disease that proceeds with focal inflammation of the respiratory tissue of the lung and sweats the inflammatory fluid into the pulmonary vesicles. Different types of pneumonia may differ somewhat in the types of pathogens, mechanisms of development and external manifestations.

Pneumonia has known classic symptoms:

Fever - increase in body temperature> + 38 ° C.
Pain in the chest from the side of the inflammation, intensifying with a deep inspiration, movement, coughing attacks.
Acceleration of dyspnea, uncharacteristic for the patient.
The appearance of a cough, sometimes with phlegm or rusty phlegm.

These symptoms when they appear in the complex should cause suspicion of inflammation of the lungs in both adults and children. Patients with pneumonia may be disturbed by general weakness, fatigue, sweating at night.

Is the course of pneumonia possible without fever?

Suddenness of onset of the disease, fever and chest pain may sometimes not occur, for example, in elderly and weakened patients with immunodeficiency.

In elderly people who have severe chronic diseases or a decrease in body defenses, there can be pneumonia without temperature. In 25% of patients with pneumonia at the age of> 65 years, fever is often absent, and extrapulmonary symptoms prevail in the clinic of the disease. External clinical signs are erased and expressed as weakness, fatigue, nausea, lack of appetite, abdominal pain, confusion of consciousness.

With such a hidden course of the disease, little or no external signs of pulmonary inflammation, usually detected by the doctor during examination, are absent.

The idea that there is pneumonia without a temperature should arise if, for obvious reasons, the elderly, children and weakened people significantly reduced physical activity. At patients the general expressed weakness grows, the person ceases to move, all time lays, becomes indifferent, quite often drowsy, refuses reception of food.

How to suspect lung inflammation without fever?

A careful examination of a sick person sometimes reveals a one-sided cheeks blush on the side of the inflammation and dryness of the tongue, coated with a white coating. Pneumonia without temperature is always manifested by a significant increase in dyspnoea and rapid heart rate - tachycardia. Listening to the lungs usually helps to detect a place of accumulation of wet wheezing above the lesion site.

There are classic signs of inflammation of the lungs, detected when the patient examines the doctor. These symptoms will help diagnose "pneumonia" without temperature in weakened patients.

Stupidity of the percussion sound over the inflamed part of the lung during percussion.
Limited focus of hard breathing over the lungs when listening.
Limited congestion of sonorous small bubbly wet wheezes.
Limited loss of breath over the pulmonary field.

What is the danger of belated diagnosis of inflammation of the lungs?

Late diagnosis and delayed antimicrobial treatment in patients with pneumonia for more than 4 hours, worsen the survival prognosis.

Pneumonia is dangerous by the development of complications:

Pulmonary - exudate pleurisy, suppuration of the lung, empyema of the pleura, edema of the lungs.
Extrapulmonary - infectious-toxic shock, psychosis, pericarditis (inflammation of the cardiac sac), myocarditis (inflammation of the heart muscle), sepsis (blood infection).

Will X-rays help clarify the diagnosis of pneumonia without temperature?

An X-ray study of patients with a presumed diagnosis of pneumonia will help clarify the signs of lung inflammation and its complications.

To confirm the diagnosis of "pneumonia the patient is given a chest x-ray in two projections. The main x-ray sign of pneumonia is a limited darkening of the lung tissue against the background of external signs of inflammation of the respiratory tract. In the absence of darkening of the lung tissue on the X-ray, the conclusion about the presence of pneumonia is not justified.

Treatment of pneumonia - basic rules

Diagnostic studies should not delay the antimicrobial treatment of pneumonia due to a worsening of the prognosis when it is delayed.

Antibacterial treatment for the destruction of pathogens of pneumonia is selected on the basis of the natural activity of the drug. In each case, the possible resistance of microbes to the drug is taken into account. Treatment of pneumonia with antibiotics lasts an average of 7-10 days. In the presence of a cough with thick sticky sputum, treatment can be supplemented by expectorants and medications that dilute sputum.

An X-ray study is performed at the onset of the disease and again 10 days after the onset of antimicrobial treatment. X-ray images can be performed at an earlier time if there is a threat of complications or a significant deterioration in the patient's condition.