Lecture 20 - Respiratory Tract Infections 1 Flashcards
What generally causes URT infections?
Viruses
What causes LRT infection?
Bacteria
Name some LRT infections
- Bronchitis
- Bronchiolitis
- Pneumonia
Which viruses commonly cause URT infections?
- Parainfluenza
- Influenza
- Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV)
Name some URT infections
- Rhinitis
- Pharyngitis
- Laryngitis
- Croup
- Tracheitis
Which groups is commonly affected by pneumonia?
• the young
• the elderly
50% of affected people have a defect with their immune defences
Which agents cause pneumonia?
Mainly Strep. pneumoniae
- H. influenzae
- Klebsiella pneumoniae
- M. tuberculosis
- Legionella
What are the defences in the URT?
Nose: hairs, turbinates
Epiglottis: cough reflex
Respiratory epithelium: cilia, mucous, lysozyme, lactoferrin, sIgA, mucociliary elevator
What are turbinates?
- Bone covered by mucous membrane
- Three on each side of nose
- Warm and humidify air
- Filters dust, pollen, microbes
- Turbulence; expose air to respiratory epithelium for longer
What are the defences in the alveoli?
- sIgA
- surfactant
- complement
- alveolar macrophages
What are the general defences in the LRT?
- Alveoli
- Blood supply
- MALT
Why is a good blood supply protective in the LRT?
Access to:
• neutrophils
• IgG
• complement
What is present in the mucous of the URT?
- Lysozyme
- Lactoferrin
- sIgA
What components of the innate immune system can be compromised, leading to LRT infection?
Defects in defences
• cough reflex
• phagocytes
• cilia
What is aspiration pneumonia ?
Breathe in the bacteria
No cough reflex when comatose
Such as in heavy drinking
What is aspiration pneumonia?
When does it happen?
Breathe in contents of URT
• Coma: no cough reflex
• Heavy drinkning
Where are most bacteria found in the respiratory tract?
Most to least: • Saliva • Gingival scrapings • Tooth surfaces • Nose washings
Describe the microbiota of the lower respiratory tract
Sterile
Which organisms are commonly found in the upper respiratory tract?
G+ cocci
Streptococci
What are the symptoms of pneumonia?
- Fever
- Cough
- Rapid respiration
- Chest pain
- Cyanosis
- Chest sounds
- Shortness of breath
What happens to the chest x ray in pneumonia
May be abnormal
• Lobar: indicates Strep. pneumoniae infection
• Non-lobar: indicates Infleunza infection
What do the X rays look like?
Normal: clear
Lobar pneumonia: upper lobe cloudy due to pus. S. pneumoniae
Non-lobar: scatter infiltrate throughout the lungs. Influenza virus
Describe the onset of pneumonia
Can be either acute or chronic
Depends on the cause
Where can pneumonia be acquired?
What is the difference?
- Community
- Hospital
Different organisms and modes of spread
How do the microbes get in?
- Inhalation
- Aspiration of URT contents in coma
- Spread along mucous membrane surface
- From blood
How is pneumonia diagnosed in a laboratory
- Specimen collected
- Microscopy
- Culture
- Antigen detection assay using PCR
- Antibody
How do we diagnose pneumoniae?
Clinical: history, examination, predisposing factors
Radiological: chest x ray
Lab
What do we look for in the specimen?
Pus cells
Bacteria
Not looking for epithelial cells –> indicates URT
What sort of sputum is collected
Sputum
Blood
Serum –> looking for antibodies
Why is S. pneumoniae important?
Most common cause of death in <5s world wide