How do you get pneumonia? The majority of the germs that cause infection are spread from person to person through droplets, from coughing or sneezing.
People who smoke are at higher risk for pneumonia, as are people on immunosuppressive medications, and people who are frequently in close, crowded spaces with others, such as college students and military personnel.
RELATED: 10 Pneumonia-Related Terms You Need to Know
What Types of Pneumonia Are There?
Your doctors will try to classify your type of pneumonia to help guide your treatment.
Community-Acquired Pneumonia (CAP)
You can also develop CAP after you get a viral infection, such as a cold, the flu, or the COVID-19Â virus.
CAP ranges from mild to serious and, if left untreated, can lead to respiratory failure or death.
Various types of bacteria can be responsible for the illness. In most cases, the bacteria will enter the lung during inhalation, then travel into the bloodstream, potentially causing damage to other organs and systems in the body.
- Having an underlying lung disease, like asthma or COPD
- Having a systemic disease, such as diabetes
- Having a weakened immune system
- Abusing alcohol
- Smoking
Depending on how sick you are and whether you have any other health conditions, your doctor may treat you for a presumptive bacterial pneumonia with antibiotics either at home or in the hospital.
Antibiotics are ineffective against viral pneumonia. Your doctor will most likely treat the symptoms — fever, cough, and dehydration.
You or your child may need to be hospitalized if your viral pneumonia symptoms become severe.
Hospital-Acquired Pneumonia
Hospital-acquired pneumonia usually needs to be treated in the hospital with intravenous antibiotics.
Aspiration Pneumonia
This can develop after a person inhales food, drink, vomit, or saliva into their lungs. Once your lungs have been irritated by breathing in food or stomach contents, a bacterial infection can develop.
A strong gag reflex or cough will usually prevent aspiration pneumonia, but you may be at risk if you have a hard time swallowing or have a decreased level of alertness.
Aspiration pneumonia causes inflammation without bacterial infection. These pneumonias can sometimes be difficult to treat, especially because the patients are often sicker to begin with.
Some conditions that may put you at risk for aspiration pneumonia include:
- Loss of alertness due to medicines, illness, or surgery (getting anesthesia)
- Overuse of alcohol
- Old age
- Poor gag reflex due to brain injury or stroke
- Coma
Symptoms of aspiration pneumonia include cough, increased sputum, fever, confusion, and shortness of breath.
You can prevent complications by not eating or drinking before surgery, working with a therapist to learn how to swallow without aspirating, and avoiding heavy use of alcohol.
Opportunistic Infection
Finally, Pneumocystis pneumonia is a fungal pneumonia that is extremely rare in healthy people, according to the CDC, but develops in people with a weakened immune system; it’s often referred to as an opportunistic infection.
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