Discussion on Pneumonia in Children (Essay Sample)

Pneumonia in Children
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Pneumonia in Children
Pneumonia is an airborne that affects the respiratory system's function properly. It is a cause of death to children, especially under two years. Pneumonia was first discovered by a Greek physician Hippocrates. It was identified as a sickness, and later scholars developed its name as a separate infection and named it Pneumonia. Pneumonia is most common in Sub-Saharan and South Africa. It affects mainly children. Pneumonia affects children's breathing by filling their breathing organs such as air sacs and lungs with pus or water. It is caused by Streptococcus Pneumoniae germ living in the upper respiratory tract. This germ can occur on its own after contracting a cold. Community-acquired Pneumonia affects almost 500000 children of America every year. Influenza and Pneumonia are among the top causes of death for infants in the united states, with an estimated death rate of 14% per 100000 population.
Signs of Pneumonia are common for different children who have been affected. Children often complain of chest pains mostly. Bacterial Pneumonia is the most dangerous type of Pneumonia. Early symptoms of Pneumonia include dry cough, fever, muscle, headache. And shortness of breath. These symptoms may vary from child to child in certain groups of people. Infants tend to hide early symptoms of Pneumonia, although they may show some tenderness of restlessness, vomiting, or have a fever (Leung, Wong, Hon, 2018). Adults and people with weak immune systems may develop some mental sudden changes and experience variation in temperature. Other symptoms of Pneumonia include vomiting, shallow breathing, shaking, chills, and loss of appetite.
Pneumonia diagnostic testing is important because different people can have different signs of Pneumonia. Chest radiography can be conducted to confirm the presence of Pneumonia in children after a failed improvement from the first mode of treatment within seventy-two hours of initiation with antibiotics. Nurses can also use Chest Ultrasonography to replace radiography to obtain the diagnosis results fully. School-aged children can be treated with Amoxicillin as another option. Improved Childhood and maternal immunization against viral pathogens and bacteria decrease Pneumonia's risk.
Diagnosing Pneumonia can sometimes become difficult due to varying symptoms from one individual to another. Your doctor should inquire about your medical history and run some tests to conclude the real germ to treat. Some of the questions that a doctor may ask you includes the following; Your occupation, any recent travels, if you may have recently contacted another illness, and whether you have had contacts with animals. The doctor will then conduct a physical exam of your lungs using a stethoscope. If you have an infection, the lungs will make bubbling, rumbling, and cracking sounds when you inhale. To make sure it is Pneumonia, the doctor may run some other tests on your child's body.
These tests may include blood tests to identify the germ that has affected you and confirm the infection. Chest X-Ray to gather complete information about your lungs (Berce et al.,2019). The doctor may also conduct a sputum test of mucus to identify the source of the infection. Pulse Oximetry is another test undertaken to measure the amount of oxygen capacity in your lungs. Other tests that may be necessary to carry out include; Bronchoscopy, which involves examining the lungs' airways if you have been hospitalized for a while with still negative results. They can also conduct pleural fluid culture that removes a small tissue around the lungs to identify the type of bacteria. CT scan is another test conducted to identify other lung complications. The doctor can also do an Arterial blood gas test to find out the amount of oxygen in your bloodstream.
Pneumonia can be treated using different types of medication depending on the type of bacteria involved in it. The most common method is antibiotics such as Macrolides and Amoxicillin, which provides treatment for community-acquired Pneumonia. Macrolides cub organisms such as legionella, Mycoplasma, and gram-positive. Cough medicine can also be used to treat Pneumonia to calm the cough so that you can rest (Lee et al.,2018). Fever reducers can also be used for discomfort and fever. These drugs include Ibuprofen (Motrin IB, Advil), aspirin, and acetaminophen such as Tylenol. Children may be hospitalized if they are less than two months old, excessively sleepy, experience some trouble in breathing, and therefore they need the aid of a ventilator machine. They can also be hospitalized if they have been discovered low oxygen levels after conducting some blood tests and if they seem dehydrated.
Children can also get immunized against bacteria such as Streptococcus Pneumoneae, Haemophilus Influenza type b, and Bordetella pertussis to protect them from Community-Acquired Pneumonia caused by the bacteria pathogens listed above. Children above six months or even adults can be immunized against the influenza virus to protect them from Pneumonia. Maternal immunization with tetanus toxoid helps prevent diarrhea.
There are other home remedies and lifestyles that parents can use to monitor their children and help them recover quickly from Pneumonia; Ensure children are infected, get plenty of rest. Please don't send them to school while their temperatures are still high or coughing. They should ensure they fully recover from the infection before resuming their normal routine to prevent the recurring of