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It’s Hard to Blog When You Have Pneumonia

Sorry I haven’t been updating Mommy’s Busy, Go Ask Daddy much lately. At least I have a good excuse.

I spent the last two days in the hospital with pneumonia. And let me tell you, it’s far from fun.

It started last Saturday with a high fever and bad cough. I went to the urgent care place on Sunday and they diagnosed me with bronchitis, gave me an antibiotic (Augmentan) and sent me on my way.

I was getting slightly better but my fever get spiking to 102 or 103 at night and my cough didn’t get any better. Then Wednesday I had some odd symptoms in the morning. I felt way out of it, sweating like crazy, heart racing and sweating like crazy. I thought I was gonna hurl,…

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Featured

  Understanding the New Pneumonia Guideline

In the outpatient setting, the latest guideline recommends the following antibiotic regimen for empiric treatment of CAP: Previously healthy with low risk for resistance: amoxicillin 1g TID; doxycycline 100mg BID; or azithromycin (macrolides assuming low community pneumococcal resistance, <25%). With comorbid diseases of heart, lung, liver, kidney, malignancy, or asplenia: amoxicillin/clavulanate + macrolide or doxycycline; another option is cepodoxime or cefuroxime + macrolide or doxycycline; OR monotherapy with a respiratory fluoroquinolone. Clinicians should be cautious when prescribing a fluoroquinolone; especially in older patients.

Articles of Interest

Community-acquired pneumonia: Strategies for triage and treatment

Community-acquired pneumonia significantly contributes to patient morbidity and healthcare costs. As our understanding of this common infection grows, collaborative efforts among researchers and clinical societies provide new literature and updated guidelines informing its management. This review discusses diagnostic methods, empiric treatment, and infection prevention strategies for patients with suspected community-acquired pneumonia.

Diagnosis and Treatment of Adults with Community-acquired Pneumonia.

Antibiotic recommendations for the empiric treatment of CAP are based on selecting agents effective against the major treatable bacterial causes of CAP.

Atypical Pathogens and Challenges in Community-Acquired Pneumonia

Therapy for pneumonia is empiric because specific pathogens usually are not identified at the time treatment is initiated. Several classes of antibiotics are effective against atypical pathogens. However, because C. pneumoniae and Legionella species are intracellular organisms and M. pneumoniae lacks a cell wall, beta-lactams are not effective.

Community-acquired pneumonia

Community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) is one of the most common acute infections requiring admission to hospital. The main causative pathogens of CAP are Streptococcus pneumoniae, influenza A, Mycoplasma pneumoniae and Chlamydophila pneumoniae, and the dominant risk factors are age, smoking and comorbidities.

Community-Acquired Pneumonia in Adults: Diagnosis and Management

Most outpatients with community-acquired pneumonia do not require microbiologic testing of sputum or blood and can be treated empirically with a macrolide, doxycycline, or a respiratory fluoroquinolone. Patients requiring hospitalization should be treated with a fluoroquinolone or a combination of beta-lactam plus macrolide antibiotics.

My Fight With Pneumonia

It has been a learning experience. Part of it involves fear; how does someone get that sick that quick? How does a lung infection in one lung morph into Pneumonia in both lungs? I have no answers to these questions.

Resources

MedlinePlus

The most common type of bacteria is Streptococcus pneumoniae (pneumococcus). Atypical pneumonia, often called walking pneumonia, is caused by other bacteria.

StatPearls

Community-acquired pneumonia is a leading cause of hospitalization, mortality, and incurs significant health care costs. As disease presentation varies from a mild illness that can be managed as an outpatient to a severe illness requiring treatment in the intensive care unit, determining the appropriate level of care is important for improving outcomes in addition to early diagnosis and appropriate and timely treatment.

UpToDate

Community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. The clinical presentation of CAP varies, ranging from mild pneumonia characterized by fever and productive cough to severe pneumonia characterized by respiratory distress and sepsis. Because of the wide spectrum of associated clinical features, CAP is a part of the differential diagnosis of nearly all respiratory illnesses.