Atypical pneumonia is not a separate disease, but a group of viral infections of the respiratory tract. This name was given to pathology due to the fact that the main pathogens are viruses that are completely uncharacteristic for respiratory diseases.
Features of the disease
This type of pneumonia is an infectious and inflammatory disease that can be transmitted by airborne or domestic routes. Outside the carrier, SARS viruses remain viable for six hours.
Types of pathogens of a dangerous disease:
- Viruses that cause respiratory infections, flu, coronaviruses.
- Chlamydia and mycoplasma, which are intracellular parasites.
- Salmonella, Legionella, which are bacteria of gram-negative flora.
- Bacteria that cause leptospirosis.
Regardless of what causes the disease, these bacteria are characterized by increased resistance to common antibiotics (penicillin, cephalosporin).
Symptoms of the disease
The first symptoms of SARS most often occur within 3-4 days after contact with the pathogen. From a scientific point of view, the latent period lasts up to 10 days. The first signs of the disease may vary, a lot depends on the main pathogen.
It is also important to consider that SARS in children is easier to tolerate than in adults.
It is customary to distinguish the following manifestations of the main clinical picture of pathology:
- Fever (fever).
- Increased weakness and headaches.
- The condition of chills at night is characterized by increased sweating.
- Severe cough, shortness of breath, respiratory failure.
- Chest pains.
How the disease develops depends largely on the patient’s health and on the form of the pulmonary infection. In rare cases, signs of SARS may be accompanied by bouts of vomiting and nausea.
Symptoms of SARS are characterized by a characteristic feature: a few days after the first manifestations, they disappear, but then return with renewed vigor, which greatly worsens the patient’s health.
It is impossible to establish an accurate diagnosis without specialized medical examinations.
Diagnosis of SARS
Guided only by symptoms, it is impossible to accurately establish the diagnosis of SARS. To identify bacteria and microorganisms that are causative agents of difficult pathologies, the following methods are used:
- Microbiological research.
- Bacteriological research.
- Immunological
- X-ray.
Depending on the main pathogenic bacterium, in addition, the doctor may prescribe a sputum or blood test, which will allow a more complete picture of the disease.
If the symptoms of SARS are misinterpreted, treatment is likely to be ineffective. But even when diagnosing a dangerous inflammatory process in the lungs, it is important to accurately determine its source, otherwise it will not be possible to choose the right course of antibiotics.
With untimely or incorrect treatment, SARS can lead to the development of unwanted and serious complications.
Childhood illness
Despite the fact that the child tolerates the disease more easily, it is sometimes much more difficult to diagnose it correctly than in an adult.
It is customary to highlight the main symptoms of SARS in children, which should alert first of all:
- The appearance of a rash on the body of the child.
- Heavy sweating.
- Lack of condition and lack of appetite.
- Attacks of nausea and vomiting.
- A noticeable increase in the liver and spleen in size.
Often all the characteristic symptoms are very similar to complications after the flu or other viral diseases. In most cases, the disease in childhood is provoked by a decrease in the level of protection of the immune system, but in rare cases, this may indicate other pathologies:
- Disease of the blood and blood vessels.
- Diseases are easy.
- Pathology of the kidneys.
Timely and correct diagnosis will facilitate the treatment of SARS in children.
Disease in old age
Signs of the disease at any age are similar to one degree or another. In older people, pneumonia is much harder to carry, and more severe forms of the disease are more common.
Symptoms of SARS in adults have their own characteristic manifestations:
- The acute course of the disease, which is accompanied by severe nasal congestion, as well as sore throat, similar to angina.
- The temperature in SARS in adults jumps to 40 degrees, accompanied by severe cough and sore throat.
- In medical practice, there are cases when the disease is accompanied by shortness of breath and damage to the nervous system.
Self-medication with the appearance of characteristic signs is unacceptable. The presence of kidney disease, malignant tumors, central nervous system diseases and smoking in old age increase the risk of developing SARS.
Timely diagnosis is important at any age. This disease of the respiratory tract is dangerous and requires constant medical supervision.
Mycoplasma pneumonia
This type of disease is most often found in childhood, while with adulthood, the risk of getting sick from this intracellular parasite decreases. Pneumonia is rarely accompanied by temperatures above 38 degrees. A distinctive feature is the presence of dry cough, which does not go away within two weeks.
Mycoplasma pneumonia can occur in children's groups and spread rapidly among participants. However, statistics say that the disease rarely proceeds in a severe form and with timely treatment does not cause complications.
In rare cases, the pathology goes into a severe stage and is accompanied by severe fever, intoxication symptoms. Lymph nodes become inflamed and increase in size, a rash appears, and the cardiovascular system is disturbed. However, there is no reason to panic, since with a vigilant attitude to health such a development of events can easily be avoided.
Chlamydial pneumonia
Bacteria such as chlamydia can live in the human body for a long time without manifesting themselves. Moreover, in some cases, it is they that provoke the development of inflammatory lung disease.
This form of pneumonia is also characteristic of children, most often occurs in a mild form. The following symptoms are considered the main symptoms:
- Sensation of aches in the joints.
- Dry cough.
- Elevated body temperature.
Often these factors are mistaken for a common respiratory illness, but a more detailed examination reveals the true cause. Therefore, it is worth mentioning once again that it is contraindicated to let the symptoms drift, this can lead to the development of complications.
Legionella pneumonia
The main causative agent of this type of pneumonia is often found in ventilation systems, so it is unlikely that anyone can consider themselves completely immune from the disease. A large role in this will be played by human immunity.
Infection occurs by airborne droplets and most often affects older people than children. The course of this disease is quite severe:
- Shortness of breath is observed.
- Chest pains.
- Severe cough with expectoration of blood.
- Disorders in the work of the heart.
- Very high temperature.
The main season for the development of this type of pneumonia is considered summer, and renal failure is an additional factor that serves as a catalyst.
Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome
The most dangerous type of pneumonia, moreover, it has been little studied. It occurs most often in adulthood, it affects children extremely rarely.
This type of infection affects the lower parts of the respiratory organs. The disease is transmitted by airborne droplets, but studies have also shown the presence of a pathogen bacterium (coronavirus) in the urine and feces, which does not exclude transmission by the fecal-oral route.
The disease does not differ in specific symptoms and is accompanied by the following symptoms:
- Significant increase in temperature.
- Fever.
- Increased sweating.
- Strong headache.
- Vomiting and nausea.
- Dry cough and shortness of breath are gradually added.
Most often, the main manifestations can be reduced within a week, a person begins to recover gradually. The exceptions are cases of a sharp deterioration in health and the need to connect the patient to mechanical ventilation. Such a development of events can lead to death due to heart or respiratory failure and other serious complications.
SARS treatment
Modern medicine has a wide range of antibacterial drugs that can alleviate the condition of the patient. However, there is no special remedy for SARS, which makes it necessary to prescribe a complex of drugs.
Doctors resort to the use of the entire arsenal of drugs for the treatment of pneumonia of unknown etiology. Antiviral drugs and broad-spectrum antibiotics are primarily prescribed. This effectively eliminates the risk of secondary infection. Depending on the severity of the disease, antibiotics can be taken in tablet form or by intravenous or intramuscular administration.
In addition, hormonal agents and antimicrobials can be prescribed to the patient, the use of which is determined by the attending physician.
The treatment is aimed not only at eliminating the causative virus, but also at reducing the intensity of the main symptoms, which helps to alleviate the general condition of the patient during the treatment period.
If we talk about treatment in general, then it includes:
- Antibiotics.
- Antiviral agents.
- Antimicrobial agents.
- Hormones.
- Vitamin support complex.
- Immunostimulating agents.
In some cases, human immunity copes with pathogenic organisms using only general strengthening therapy. In such cases, the doctor does not prescribe a course of antibacterial drugs so as not to increase the adverse effect on the body.
Vaccination
In modern medicine there is a vaccine for pneumonia of a classical nature, which has nothing to do with the etymology of SARS.
As already mentioned, a single remedy for pneumonia of an atypical nature does not exist, therefore, when symptoms appear, you should not look for a magic pill, you must urgently consult a doctor to make a diagnosis and formulate a course of treatment.
Reasons for hospitalization
In the case of diagnosis of SARS, doctors recommend that inpatient treatment be performed so that medical personnel can monitor the patient's condition and respond in time to possible changes.
However, there are cases when hospitalization is necessary:
- If the patient’s age is too small or considered advanced.
- Signs of confused consciousness were found.
- Severe shortness of breath and discoloration of the skin (blue).
- Unstable blood pressure (sharp rise or fall).
- Signs of heart or lung failure.
- If pneumonia develops against the background of another disease of the pulmonary system.
Treatment at home is certainly allowed. Provided that the form of the disease can be attributed to mild, and the patient timely controls the course of the disease at the attending physician.
It is important that the complications that appear on the background of SARS can lead to death. The prognosis for the patient depends on the timeliness of the diagnosis, on the type of pathogen and the individual characteristics of the patient’s health.
Disease prevention
Understanding what may cause atypical pneumonia, it is necessary to know what measures are used to avoid it.
Basic preventive measures:
- Experts insistently recommend avoiding a large concentration of people, especially during periods of seasonal weakening of the immune system, as well as during outbreaks of the SARS epidemic.
- During an epidemic outbreak, drink antiviral drugs that will effectively protect against influenza (pneumonia often develops as a result).
- Regularly increase the protection of the immune system with the help of special vitamin complexes.
- Observe the rules of personal hygiene, especially in public places (hand washing required).
All of these measures will not give a 100% guarantee, but will significantly reduce the risk of SARS.