Pneumonia remains the leading cause of death in children under 5 years of age. Therefore, the November 12th commemorates the World Pneumonia Day to raise awareness about the impact of this disease.
What is pneumonia?
It is an infection that occurs in the lungs and can affect both, or only part of one of them.
How do the lungs work?
In order to fully understand what happens in pneumonia, it is important to understand the anatomy of the lung in general terms. The lungs are made up of several structures and depending on the pathology, some or others will be affected. When air enters our body through the upper airways, it is transported to the trachea, and from there it passes to the main bronchi, and in turn to the lobar bronchi (which distribute it among the different pulmonary lobes, 3 in the right and two in the left). From there, the air begins to be distributed among all the segmental bronchi and then to the bronchioles, which connect directly with the alveolar sacs where the alveoli are and it is there where the gas exchange occurs.
When we say that a person suffers from pneumonia, we mean that the alveolar sacs or alveoli where oxygen uptake and carbon dioxide release occur are filled with liquid (mucus or pus), and because of that, the process cannot take place.
Depending on the surface affected, we can categorize whether this is a severe or mild pneumonia, without forgetting the symptoms that occur, the germ causing it, and other factors such as the age and health status of the patient.
The cause can be viruses, bacteria or fungi, although the most common is bacterial pneumonia. The best known and most common germs are:
- Streptococcus pneumoniae
- Legionella pneumophila (called Legionnaires' disease)
- Mycoplasma pneumoniae
- Chlamydia pneumoniae
- Haemophilus influenzae
We can also get pneumonia after suffering from a viral infection such as a simple cold, the flu, or even COVID-19.
As for pneumonia caused by fungi, it is more frequent in patients who have chronic health problems or immunosuppressed patients (whose immune system is weak).
Which are the risk factors?
We are all exposed to suffering from this disease, but there are obviously factors that can make us more vulnerable to suffering from it, such as:
- Age. There is a higher risk in children under 2 years of age and in adults over 65 years of age. In Spain, for example, pneumococcal vaccination is indicated at 2, 4 and 11 months, followed by booster vaccinations at 65 years of age.
- Exposure to fumes, gases, chemicals and/or pollutants.
- The lifestyle
- Suffering from previous chronic lung disease
- Immunosuppressed patient
- Swallowing problems or neurological diseases
The importance of vaccination as a preventive measure against pneumonia is unquestionable. For this purpose, the pneumococcal vaccine is available, recommended among other cases for people with chronic diseases, immunosuppressed patients or risk groups.
What are the most common symptoms?
Obviously each person can be affected in a different way and intensity, but the most prevalent are:
- Fever and/or chills
- Cough
- Chest pain when breathing
- Nausea and/or diarrhea
- Vomiting
- General malaise
How is pneumonia diagnosed?
First of all, an assessment and examination of the patient and symptoms must be carried out, and according to medical criteria, the relevant diagnostic tests will be requested, such as:
- Chest X-ray
- Blood test
- blood culture
- Sputum analysis
- TAC
- Arterial blood gases
- bronchoscopy
How is it cured?
Pneumonia will be treated depending on the germ that causes it.That is, if it is a virus, medication can be given for the symptoms - such as fever and discomfort - and sometimes antivirals can be prescribed.
On the other hand, if it is of a bacterial and/or fungal type, the most common thing is to prescribe antibiotic treatment.
Sometimes, when the infection is more serious, oxygen and even breathing support may be required, in addition to pharmacological treatment.
Does respiratory physiotherapy help treat pneumonia?
The patient should always be assessed by a physiotherapist who is an expert in the respiratory field, who will observe and assess the stage of the disease, as well as perform and/or analyse the necessary complementary tests to propose the best treatment for the patient.
In this case, the work of the respiratory physiotherapist will be focused on:
- Help drain mucus from the lungs.
- Improve the patient's alveolar ventilation.
- Improve alveolar and pulmonary reexpansion.
Call for global action on childhood pneumonia
- Develop pneumonia control strategies
- Strengthening the quality of primary health care and taking action against pneumonia
- Increased investments in health and nutrition at the national level
- Improving health governance
- Accelerating vaccination coverage
- Improving official development assistance
- Engage with the private sector to improve access
- Measuring and reporting progress towards achieving health coverage
- Prioritize research, development and innovation
- Promote multi-sector partnerships
Source: Stoppneumonia.org
If you have any questions or would like more information about respiratory health, you can contact the Lovexair Foundation. We will be happy to assist you and advise you on your illness and how respiratory rehabilitation can help you.
Questions and information: tell us@lovexair.com
Author: Mar Esteban
Last updated on 10 November, 2021
