PNEUMONIA
What is pneumonia?
Pneumonia (medical name pneumonia) is simply inflammation of the lung tissue. Although it is an infection mostly caused by microorganisms such as bacteria, viruses and fungi in the lungs, it can also rarely occur due to dust, parasites, chemicals and food residues entering the lungs.
In pneumonia, the small air sacs (alveoli) in the lung become filled with fluid due to inflammation and it is difficult for the fresh air (oxygen) to pass through the air sacs into the blood. This causes symptoms such as cough, fever, chills-chills and respiratory problems in patients.
Why is pneumonia an important disease?
Pneumonia causes more deaths worldwide than any other disease.
Pneumonia is a common disease affecting approximately 450 million people worldwide each year.
Pneumonia is an infectious disease that causes the most deaths in children under the age of five.
Pneumonia alone causes more deaths in children under the age of five worldwide than deaths from AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis combined.
In 2017, 1.1 million children under the age of five died from pneumonia in the world, and most of these children died before they even reached the age of two.
Unfortunately, 99% of deaths occurred in developing countries where access to health care and treatment was inadequate.
In whom is pneumonia more common?
No one is immune to pneumonia.
This disease can be serious for
infants and young children (under 2 years old)
people aged 65 and over (elderly).
The disease is also more common and dangerous in the following groups:
Those with asthma, chronic bronchitis and similar lung diseases, and chronic diseases such as heart disease
Those who received organ transplants, those who receive chemotherapy, those who use long-term steroids, Those who have a weak immune system such as HIV/AIDS
Smokers and people who consume excessive alcoholic beverages
What are the symptoms of pneumonia?
Pneumonia and its symptoms vary according to the health condition and age of the people. While the disease sometimes manifests itself with mild symptoms, it sometimes causes life-threatening serious disability and death.
Patients with pneumonia often have severe chills followed by fever, rust-colored sputum, dry and wheezing cough, chest pain, stinging pain when inhaled, shortness of breath, increased respiratory rate, decreased appetite, and tiredness. In elderly patients, these symptoms can go up to loss of consciousness, absent-mindedness, perception disorders, and coma in advanced stages.
Treatment
People with the above-mentioned complaints should absolutely consult a doctor.
When the patient is diagnosed with pneumonia, it is first decided whether the treatment will be in the hospital or at home. In this decision, criteria such as the severity of the disease, physical examination findings, the extent of disease as seen in the x-ray, the presence of another underlying disease and the age of the patient are taken into consideration.
Intravenous antibiotics are administered to hospitalized patients. Fever may be high for 3 days after starting antibiotics. Depending on the severity of the disease, sometimes the patient may need to be treated under intensive care conditions.
What precautions should be taken to prevent pneumonia?
Many factors can cause pneumonia. For this reason, a single measure is not effective in the prevention, treatment and control of the disease.
The World Health Organization draws attention to five effective preventions that are simple to implement but will reduce the negative health consequences of the disease if implemented.
These precautions include:
Infants should be fed exclusively with breast milk for the first 6 months and with nutritious solid foods until the age of two
Children should receive pertussis, measles, hemophilus influenza type B (a type of bacteria) and pneumococcal (a type of bacteria) vaccines
Safe drinking water, sanitation and hand washing facilities should be provided
Indoor air pollution should be reduced (no smoking at home, heating and cooking systems should be made healthier)
Patients should be treated (by using medication and oxygen)
Pneumococcal vaccine
“Stretococcus pneumoniae” bacteria at adult age is the most common cause of pneumonia. It settles in the nasal-pharyngeal region in healthy people. It is transmitted from person to person by close contact. It causes middle ear infection and sinusitis. If the disease progresses, it can affect the lungs, brain and joints. In cases of more severe infection, pneumonia, meninges, peritoneum infection, joint infection, osseous infection can cause heart valve infection and pericardial infection in rare cases.
Patients with compromised immune systems are more susceptible to these infections. The risk is high in young children, the elderly, patients with underlying lung disease such as COPD (Chronic-obstructive pulmonary disease) and chronic heart disease.
There are two types of pneumonia vaccine: the polysaccharide pneumococcal vaccine and the conjugated pneumococcal vaccine. Side effects of both vaccines are very rare and they are very safe. It is recommended that you consult your doctor for the selection, prescription and treatment scheme of the vaccine that is suitable for you.
Within the scope of the Extended Immunization Program put into effect by the Ministry of Health, Public Health Agency, pneumonia vaccines are recommended and routinely administered to everyone over the age of 65 and to risk groups between the ages of 18-64 with concomitant diseases such as COPD, asthma, diabetes, chronic heart failure, chronic kidney disease, and cancer.
