Pneumonia

Source

Pneumonia is an inflammatory illness of the lung.^[1] Frequently, it is described as lung parenchyma/alveolar inflammation and abnormal alveolar filling with fluid (consolidation and exudation).^[2]

The alveoli are microscopic air-filled sacs in the lungs responsible for absorbing oxygen. Pneumonia can result from a variety of causes, including infection with bacteria, viruses, fungi, or parasites, and chemical or physical injury to the lungs. Its cause may also be officially described as idiopathic—that is, unknown—when infectious causes have been excluded.

Typical symptoms associated with pneumonia include cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty in breathing. Diagnostic tools include x-rays and examination of the sputum. Treatment depends on the cause of pneumonia; bacterial pneumonia is treated with antibiotics.

Pneumonia is a common illness which occurs in all age groups, and is a leading cause of death among the elderly and people who are chronically and terminally ill. Additionally, it is the leading cause of death in children under five years old worldwide.^[3] Vaccines to prevent certain types of pneumonia are available. The prognosis depends on the type of pneumonia, the appropriate treatment, any complications, and the person's underlying health.

Early classification schemes

Initial descriptions of pneumonia focused on the anatomic or pathologic appearance of the lung, either by direct inspection at autopsy or by its appearance under a microscope.

• A lobar pneumonia is an infection that only involves a single lobe, or section, of a lung. Lobar pneumonia is often due to Streptococcus pneumoniae (though Klebsiella pneumoniae is also possible.)^[4]
• Multilobar pneumonia involves more than one lobe, and it often causes a more severe illness.
• Bronchial pneumonia affects the lungs in patches around the tubes (bronchi or bronchioles).
• Interstitial pneumonia involves the areas in between the alveoli, and it may be called "interstitial pneumonitis." It is more likely to be caused by viruses or by atypical bacteria.

The discovery of x-rays made it possible to determine the anatomic type of pneumonia without direct examination of the lungs at autopsy and led to the development of a radiological classification. Early investigators distinguished between typical lobar pneumonia and atypical (e.g. Chlamydophila) or viral pneumonia using the location, distribution, and appearance of the opacities they saw on chest x-rays. Certain x-ray findings can be used to help predict the course of illness, although it is not possible to clearly determine the microbiologic cause of a pneumonia with x-rays alone.

With the advent of modern microbiology, classification based upon the causative microorganism became possible. Determining which microorganism is causing an individual's pneumonia is an important step in deciding treatment type and length. Sputum cultures, blood cultures, tests on respiratory secretions, and specific blood tests are used to determine the microbiologic classification. Because such laboratory testing typically takes several days, microbiologic classification is usually not possible at the time of initial diagnosis.

so mommies out there,be carefull with this disease..my son been admitted for 5 days because of this shit..it was terribly sad,we are one of the 'great parents' who took the pneumococol vaccines for granted..*sigh..

have to depend on drips 24x7 since he refused to drink milk

nurse trying to calm him down

only god knows how sad we are :( ..im sobbing to see him in physio room during chest physio..thank god that he is negative h1n1..im not going to expose him after this..he need to be quarantine until he is 110% recovered.

the thing make me so sad and down is,when they questioned how it happened,since basil is on fully EBM,he supposed to have stronger antibodies..:( ,maybe they didn't know what caused the disease..and i don't know..i have limited time to search on this :((((

'Breast milk is the perfect source of nutrition for infants. Breast milk contains appropriate amounts of carbohydrate, protein, and fat. It also provides the digestive proteins, minerals, vitamins, and hormones that infants need. Breast milk contains valuable antibodies from the mother that may help the baby resist infections.' from here

might be from the EBM handling :(..or i dunno,one of my friend said that breast milk can resist normal infections such as fever,coughed,flu..but not bacterial infection ,and in u.s they gave supplement (vitamin) for babies and all the optional vaccines here are compulsory.

maybe its already written,no matter what we did 'ikhtiar' to prevent..wallahualam..

*pls pray for my son.he is recovering..but still not 110% ,we still need to monitor and follow up wt paed