Pneumonia is a serious infectious disease. Under normal conditions, it can have a fairly pronounced clinical course, but certain factors can greatly lubricate the main manifestations of the disease.
Pneumonia in adults: symptoms, signs, causes under normal conditions
This disease occurs due to the development of microflora in the lung tissue and its gradual damage. A wide variety of infections can enter the body to give rise to such a pathological process.
Another factor contributing to the development of pneumonia is a local or general decrease in immunity.
Among the main symptoms of this disease, it is necessary to note, first of all, fever, severe cough, shortness of breath with the slightest physical exertion, poor general he alth.
Pneumonia in adults: symptoms, causes, types inunusual conditions
There are two main reasons why the clinical manifestations of the inflammatory process in the lungs will differ from the classics. Among them, the following should be noted:
- decreased immunity;
- uncontrolled use of antibacterial agents.
Both of these causes can significantly change the clinical picture of pneumonia.
Incorrect use of antibiotics
Today, the uncontrolled use of antimicrobials has become a real problem for society. The fact is that this circumstance over time gradually leads to the formation of resistance to an antibacterial agent in an infection. As a result, the antimicrobial drug simply ceases to have a sufficient effect on pathogenic bacteria.
In addition, self-administration of such drugs can significantly reduce the severity of the main clinical manifestations of the disease. For example, pneumonia occurs in children and adults. Without a temperature reaching high enough values, few people immediately get worried and decide to see a doctor. As a result, the disease will proceed in a latent form, and the patient will not receive rational treatment. This will lead to a gradual involvement in the pathological process of more and more new areas of the lung tissue. As a result, the patient will have other, more threatening clinical manifestations. The main signs of pneumonia in adults without fever are an increase in shortness of breath, the appearancea streak of blood in coughing up sputum, as well as pain in the chest that occurs when the pleura is involved in the pathological process.
Now doctors are trying to limit the self-administration of antibacterial agents by patients. One of the main ways has become the issuance of such drugs only by prescription.
About lowering immunity
The clinical picture of pneumonia can change greatly not only under the influence of antibacterial agents, but also in conditions of a decrease in the protective properties of the body. As a result, the typical first signs of pneumonia in adults may not be present. As a result, the patient does not immediately notice a serious problem. Signs of pneumonia in adults without fever under such conditions are expressed in the appearance of a painful blush on the side of the lesion of the lung tissue. This symptom has a particularly high diagnostic value in the case of an isolated lesion of one lung.
Rise in temperature in this case is not observed for the reason that the body's defenses are depleted. At the same time, hyperthermia is the most important factor of defense. The fact is that in conditions of elevated temperature, it is much more difficult for pathogenic bacteria to grow and multiply. As a result, they are gradually destroyed by white blood cells.
Additional features
The symptoms of pneumonia without fever in adults are quite varied. First of all, it is aboutthe appearance of a painful blush. This sign is especially well distinguishable if the patient has unilateral pneumonia without fever. Signs of bilateral pneumonia are more noticeable, as the blush will be located on both cheeks.
In addition, a patient with pneumonia for which no rational treatment is given has a pale complexion. When breathing, there may be a delay in the excursion of that half of the chest in which the inflammatory process occurs. Naturally, such signs of pneumonia in adults without fever are well detected only in cases with unilateral pathology. In this case, the second cheek may be paler than usual.
There are several more signs that pneumonia is developing in children and adults. Without a temperature, people often do not pay attention to soreness in the chest, which increases with each breath. This approach is dangerous because you can miss a serious pathology. So if you experience pain in the chest, aggravated during inhalation, it is better to consult a specialist so that he excludes the inflammatory process in the lung tissue.
When should shortness of breath make you think?
Symptoms of pneumonia without fever in adults, as you can see, are quite diverse. One of the manifestations of the disease is shortness of breath. Normally, it can occur in any person after certain physical exertion. In the event that shortness of breath appears at rest, then one of the reasons may be the inflammatory process occurring in the lung tissue. AtAt the same time, despite the lack of motor activity, without rational antibiotic therapy, shortness of breath only gradually increases.
However, this symptom does not always indicate that inflammation of the lungs develops without fever. Signs of the same type also occur in cardiac pathology, when congestion gradually increases in the patient. A chest x-ray will help identify the exact cause of shortness of breath.
It must also be remembered that young patients should pay special attention to dyspnea at rest, since in the vast majority of cases they do not have severe cardiac pathology.
What should I do first?
In the event that typical first signs of pneumonia occur in adults, you should immediately contact a specialist - a general practitioner or pulmonologist. They will perform a general examination, including auscultation of the lungs. Based on the results of the initial diagnostic measures, the doctor will decide whether it is necessary to conduct an X-ray examination of the chest organs. If the doctor suspected something and sends the patient for such an examination, then in no case should you refuse. After an x-ray, the doctor will be able to accurately establish the diagnosis and prescribe a rational treatment.
How dangerous is pneumonia without fever?
This disease, if it occurs without hyperthermia, is very insidious. The point is that by itself, even withsubject to timely rational treatment, pneumonia is very, very dangerous. If, with inflammation of the lung tissue, antibiotic therapy is not carried out, then there is a real danger that the disease will lead to the most deplorable consequences. But not only this should scare pneumonia without fever. Such a disease is also dangerous because the patient is likely to have a weakened immune system, or he has recently taken certain antibacterial drugs. In both cases, it is usually necessary to use one of the most modern antimicrobial agents. In a situation with reduced immunity, we are talking about the fact that the body itself does not have the strength to resist the infection. In the second situation, pathogenic microorganisms have already developed resistance to one or another type of antibiotics.
How to reduce the risk of pneumonia?
First of all, serious hypothermia must be avoided. The fact is that with a significant decrease in temperature in a particular area of \u200b\u200bthe human body, the level of local immunity also decreases. As a result, pathogens have an excellent opportunity to multiply freely, affecting more and more areas of the lung tissue.
In addition, it is very important to take antibacterial agents strictly according to the recommendations of doctors. At the same time, it is necessary to stop their use not when the signs of a particular infectious disease cease to make themselves felt, but only after the completion of a full course of treatment. Otherwise, some pathogensmicroorganisms will remain. At the same time, the next time the use of the same antibiotic will have much more modest success, and the drug will have to be changed.
Another important point is the support of immunity. In order for it to be normal, it is necessary to maintain a normal level of physical activity, eat properly and in sufficient quantities, and devote due time to sleep and normal rest.
About laboratory research
They are carried out if there are signs of pneumonia in adults. This disease occurs without temperature or with hyperthermia - laboratory tests are necessary. First of all, we are talking, of course, about the general blood test. This study allows you to assess how pronounced the infectious process occurs in the lung tissue. At the same time, the doctor is most interested in the number of leukocytes, as well as the erythrocyte sedimentation rate. The fact that the process has an infectious etiology will be indicated by an increase in the level of white blood cells (more than 9109/l). The fact that inflammation occurs in the body will be indicated by an increased level of erythrocyte sedimentation rate. Often, the doctor prescribes not the usual general blood test, but a study with a formula that allows the doctor to determine which type of microorganisms caused the development of the pathology. With an increased level of neutrophils, one can speak of bacterial pneumonia, and with an increase in the number of lymphocytes, one can speak of a viral etiology of this disease.
