Community Acquired Pneumonia

Question 1

What are some of the risk factors for community acquired pneumonia? Why are they issues?

Answer 1

• smoking as it impairs mucocilary clearance and increases permeabilty of the membrane of the lungs causing inflammation.
• chronic illnesses- as the immune system is dampened naturally
• respiratory diseases: COPD, asthma, due to mucus being stagnant in the airways so more time for bugs to infect the area. Also by use of steroids which are anti-inflammatory
• low BMI and aspiration pneumonia

Question 2

What are some of the clinical presentations of community acquired pneumonia?

Answer 2

Malaise (feeling unwell)
Headache
Haemoptysis
Rigor (cold shiver)
Pleuritic chest paoin
Cough with sputum
Arthralgia (joint pain)
Myalgia (muscle pain) 
Sweating

Question 3

What might you find upon examination?

Answer 3

Dull percussion
Bronchial breathing
Crackles (fluid in the airways)
Pleural rub
CURB 65 (confusion, urea, resp rate, systolic BP, age 65+

Question 4

If suspecting pneumonia what tests might you run?

Answer 4

Chest xray
Bloods (neutrophils lymphocytes)
Sputum or blood cultures
Serology of possible infect-ants

Question 5

How would you treat pneumonia?

Answer 5

Depends on the infective agent but with antibiotics. Usually amoxicillin maybe in combination with clarithromycin

Question 6

What kind of complications can occur with pneumonia?

Answer 6

Pleural effusion
Empyema ( puss in the pleural space)

Lung abscess (puss enclosed pocket)

Acute/ adult resp distress