World Pneumonia Day 2022: Pneumonia is a serious, potentially life-threatening lung infection that can affect both children and adults. It is the biggest infectious killer of adults and children, with a global death toll of approximately 2.5 million adults and children annually. India accounts for 23 percent of the global pneumonia burden, with a mortality rate of between 14 and 30 percent.
Dr. Gautam Wankhede, Director of Medical Affairs, MyLab Discovery Solutions, shares some facts about pneumonia that you should know:
- Pneumonia can be caused by many types of bacteria, viruses and fungi in the air we breathe. The infection causes inflammation of the air sacs of the lungs, causing cough with phlegm or pus, fever, chills, and difficulty in breathing.
- Viral and bacterial pneumonia are both contagious.
- Community acquired pneumonia (CAP) is the most common type of pneumonia. CAP is one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality in India and worldwide and is one of the most serious respiratory diseases among the various infections causing sepsis.
- Specific bacterial pathogens that cause CaP include Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae, and Moraxella catarrhalis.
- An important factor in the management of pneumonia is the early diagnosis of the causative pathogen, on the basis of which appropriate anti-bacterial, anti-viral, or anti-fungal treatment can be started soon.
- A proper medical history and physical examination are important parts of diagnosing pneumonia.
- Most pneumonia cases are diagnosed with a chest X-ray, blood culture tests, and in some cases a CT scan of the chest. Bronchoscopy is advised in some cases if initial symptoms are severe or do not respond well to antibiotics.
- Microbiological tests are not entirely reliable in identifying the cause of pneumonia, and in 40–70% of pneumonia cases, the cause is never determined.
- Molecular tests such as RT PCR identify a specific pathogen and help differentiate between bacterial and viral infections and some newer molecular tests also provide information about antibiotic susceptibility. New-age RT-PCR-based molecular diagnostic kits look for the presence of 15-30 different pneumonia-causing pathogens at the same time and provide answers within 2-3 hours, unlike conventional culture methods, which have 3- It takes 5 days.
- Pneumonia can be prevented in most cases by improving hygiene, vaccination and adequate nutrition, and by addressing environmental factors such as air pollution. In addition to the above factors, vaccination against Hib, pneumococcus, measles, and whooping cough (pertussis) is very effective when it comes to preventing pneumonia in children.
This World Pneumonia Day observed annually on 12 November, let’s raise awareness about the importance of diagnosing, preventing and treating pneumonia.
(Disclaimer: Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Zee News staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)