Overview
Pneumonia is an acute infection of the pulmonary parenchyma
accompanied by symptoms of acute illness and abnormal chest findings. It is
further described in the Introduction
section.
Pneumonia is still the leading cause of death from an
infectious disease in adults and children. A detailed discussion about the
prevalence of pneumonia in the region is in the Epidemiology
section.
The most frequently isolated organism in patients with
community-acquired pneumonia is Streptococcus pneumoniae. Other commonly
identified pathogens are enumerated in the Etiology
section.
The Pathophysiology section
identifies the mechanisms involved when a patient is infected with pneumonia.
The section also mentions the virulence factors of some of the causative agents
of community-acquired pneumonia.
The Risk Factors
section identifies the various circumstances predisposing an individual to
acquiring community-acquired pneumonia.
Depending on the patient’s overall clinical
status, vital signs, presence of co-morbidities, and chest X-ray findings, the
patient may be classified to have low-, moderate- or high-risk
community-acquired pneumonia. The Classification section describes each of
these types.
History and Physical Examination
The Clinical Presentation section describes the respiratory symptoms and other signs and symptoms of patients with community-acquired pneumonia. This section also discusses the typical presentation of each type of community-acquired pneumonia.
Diagnosis
In the Diagnosis and
Diagnostic Criteria section,
factors to consider in the definite diagnosis of community-acquired pneumonia
are identified.
Several laboratory tests and imaging procedures serve as
adjuncts in diagnosing pneumonia and they are enumerated in the Laboratory Tests and Ancillaries and Imaging sections.
Other diseases that can present with the same
symptoms as pneumonia are listed in the Differential
Diagnosis section.
Management
Patients with severe community-acquired pneumonia should be
managed in a hospital setting. Indications for direct intensive care unit (ICU) admission are discussed
in the Evaluation section. In
this section also risk assessment and severity index tests are further
elaborated.
Factors to consider in the treatment of patients with
community-acquired pneumonia are in the Principles of Therapy section.
The Pharmacological Therapy
section discusses in detail the recommended empiric antibiotic
therapy and the duration of therapy based on etiology. Some of the supportive
therapies are also mentioned.
The Nonpharmacological
section includes things to educate the patient about the management of
community-acquired pneumonia.
Pneumococcal and influenza vaccines are employed in the prevention
of community-acquired pneumonia. Details on these vaccines as well as smoking
cessation are in the Prevention section.
The Monitoring
section identifies the things to monitor for each type of pneumonia and discusses
further treatment failure and criteria for discharge.
