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Concept
Bacterial pneumonia
Summary
Bacterial pneumonia is a type of pneumonia caused by bacterial infection.
Streptococcus pneumoniae () is the most common bacterial cause of pneumonia in all age groups except newborn infants. Streptococcus pneumoniae is a Gram-positive bacterium that often lives in the throat of people who do not have pneumonia.
Other important Gram-positive causes of pneumonia are Staphylococcus aureus () and Bacillus anthracis.
Gram-negative bacteria are seen less frequently: Haemophilus influenzae (), Klebsiella pneumoniae (), Escherichia coli (), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (), Bordetella pertussis, and Moraxella catarrhalis are the most common.
These bacteria often live in the gut and enter the lungs when contents of the gut (such as vomit or faeces) are inhaled.
Pneumonia caused by Yersinia pestis is usually called pneumonic plague.
Atypical bacteria causing pneumonia are Coxiella burnetii, Chlamydophila pneumoniae (), Mycoplasma pneumoniae (), and Legionella pneumophila.
The term "atypical" does not relate to how commonly these organisms cause pneumonia, how well it responds to common antibiotics or how typical the symptoms are; it refers instead to the fact that these organisms have atypical or absent cell wall structures and do not take up Gram stain in the same manner as gram-negative and gram-positive organisms.
Pneumonia
Fever
Rigors
Cough
Runny nose (either direct bacterial pneumonia or accompanied by primary viral pneumonia)
Dyspnea – shortness of breath
Chest pain
Shaking chills
Pneumococcal pneumonia can cause coughing up of blood, or hemoptysis, characteristically associated with "rusty" sputum
Bacteria typically enter the lung with inhalation, though they can reach the lung through the bloodstream if other parts of the body are infected. Often, bacteria live in parts of the upper respiratory tract and are continuously being inhaled into the alveoli, the cavities deep in the lungs where gas exchange takes place. Once inside the alveoli, bacteria travel into the spaces between the cells and also between adjacent alveoli through connecting pores.
Official source
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Pathogenic bacteria
Pathogenic bacteria are bacteria that can cause disease. This article focuses on the bacteria that are pathogenic to humans. Most species of bacteria are harmless and are often beneficial but others can cause infectious diseases. The number of these pathogenic species in humans is estimated to be fewer than a hundred. By contrast, several thousand species are part of the gut flora present in the digestive tract.
Atypical pneumonia
Atypical pneumonia, also known as walking pneumonia, is any type of pneumonia not caused by one of the pathogens most commonly associated with the disease. Its clinical presentation contrasts to that of "typical" pneumonia. A variety of microorganisms can cause it. When it develops independently from another disease, it is called primary atypical pneumonia (PAP). The term was introduced in the 1930s and was contrasted with the bacterial pneumonia caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae, at that time the best known and most commonly occurring form of pneumonia.
Bronchopneumonia
Bronchopneumonia is a subtype of pneumonia. It is the acute inflammation of the bronchi, accompanied by inflamed patches in the nearby lobules of the lungs. It is often contrasted with lobar pneumonia; but, in clinical practice, the types are difficult to apply, as the patterns usually overlap. Bronchopneumonia (lobular) often leads to lobar pneumonia as the infection progresses. The same organism may cause one type of pneumonia in one patient, and another in a different patient.