Walking Pneumonia

Walking Pneumonia, also known as Atypical Pneumonia is a variant of pneumonia not caused by one of the more traditional pathogens. It is also characterized by a clinical presentation that is inconsistent with typical pneumonia. It can be caused by a variety of microorganisms. The term Walking Pneumonia was originally coined in the 1930's. Any differentiations or distinction between Atypical and Typical pneumonia is often considered to be medically insufficient; for the treatment of pneumonia it is important to know the exact causal organism.

Primary atypical pneumonia is called so to indicate that it developed independently, not subsequent to another disease. Atypical pneumonia, on the other hand is atypical because it is caused by atypical organisms besides Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae and Moraxella catarrhalis. Atypical organisms that cause to include special bacteria, viruses, fungi and protozoa. Besides its causes, Walking Pneumonia is a form of pneumonia that is atypical in its presentation; it has only moderate amounts of sputum, only small increases in white cell counts and no alveolar exudates.

Walking Pneumonia often has atypical symptoms. There will be no response from common antibiotics such as Penicillin, coughing up of bloody mucus, shortness of breath, chest pains, high or mild headache, loss of appetite, low energy, fatigue, sweaty and clammy skin. Some less common symptoms to look for include diarrhea, eye pain, rashes or throat soars. Generally speaking, the patient looks healthier than any of the symptoms would suggest. To properly treat this disease, make sure to take Aspirin to control your fever or high temperature, drink plenty of fluids to loosen up secretions and bring up phlegm, and most importantly make sure to get plenty of rest. You can use antibiotics at home to treat your Walking Pneumonia, unless your condition is severe, which means you will most likely be admitted to a hospital and given stronger antibiotics such a Azithromycin, Clarithromycin, Erythromycin and Tetracyclines. If you adhere to these steps, you should see improvement within about a week's time. Prevention can sometimes be better than the cure, so make sure to wash your hands often, get your yearly flu shot and keep an open channel with your physician; knowing if you need a Pneumonia vaccine can help you a lot.

Walking Pneumonia is a serious illness that must be treated accordingly. Seeing that it has a clinical presentation that is inconsistent with typical pneumonia and can be caused by a variety of microorganisms, it may be a bit harder to fight, although differences between Atypical and Typical pneumonia are often considered to be medically insufficient in their treatment.