How not to miss pneumonia in a child. Pulmonologist Ekaterina Gonchar: "Pneumonia often occurs if a person's immunity is reduced." Why not everyone gets pneumonia

It is far from always possible for a doctor to hear wheezing with pneumonia, especially when the baby is restless and noisy. Yes, and pneumonia develops in children quite quickly: just yesterday, the doctor did not suspect anything other than acute respiratory infections, and today it is pneumonia.

What a vigilant mom needs to know so as not to miss it serious disease, we were told by a pediatrician of the first category, a candidate medical sciences Anna Gniloskurenko.

Inflammation of the lungs (pneumonia) - a rather serious disease, the cause of which can be various factors: viruses, bacteria, protozoa, worms, etc. The reason for the development of pneumonia largely depends on age. Most often, children get sick with bacterial and viral pneumonia, atypical less often (causative agent - special intracellular microbes) or fungal. In young children, as a rule, the main pathogens are staphylococcus aureus, streptococcus. And also the so-called Haemophilus influenzae (Hemophilus influenzae), which is currently being treated routine vaccination. For a child under the age of 5, the risk of getting pneumonia is quite high, mainly due to the same Haemophilus influenzae.

Symptoms of pneumonia

The main symptom of pneumonia, of course, is a cough. But the general aggravation of the child's condition should also alert. Look for any of the following signs in your child:

The child has become lethargic, refuses to drink and eat;

The temperature remains stable. But we must not forget that fever is an optional symptom of pneumonia;

The child begins to breathe more often, shortness of breath appears;

Additional muscles begin to participate in the act of breathing, the child breathes as if with tension;

The baby's skin may become pale, and blue may appear around the nose and lips;

Although this symptom is not clinical, there is an observation that a bright red cheek (right or left) may indicate inflammation in the corresponding lung.

Viral pneumonia most often begins with SARS, the appearance of the above-described respiratory disorders in this case allows suspecting pneumonia.

See also: PNEUMONIA IN CHILDREN OF THE FIRST YEAR OF LIFE: DIAGNOSIS, PREVENTION, TREATMENT

Diagnosis of pneumonia

To establish the diagnosis of "pneumonia" the doctor will help:

Data on the onset of the disease and how it proceeded until the moment of treatment (the so-called anamnesis);

The data of the examination of the child and the so-called physical data. The doctor can listen to the child's lungs with a stethoscope (auscultation) and, if necessary, "tap" (percussion). It is not always possible to hear characteristic wheezing when listening, but the doctor is alarmed by the “weakening” of breathing over areas of infiltration in lung tissue;

Data laboratory examinations. In favor of pneumonia, along with all of the above, such indicators as increase in ESR and leukocytes in general analysis blood, changes in the leukocyte formula;

X-rays of light. The picture will clearly show whether there are areas of infiltration in the lung tissue, and what size they are. But, despite the high information content of the X-ray method, the doctor makes his own decision on the formulation of the diagnosis, using all the data he has.

SARS is often hidden under different masks, it is sometimes difficult to see it even for an experienced doctor. For example, in practice there was a case when the leading symptom in a child was vomiting at night for several days, and only when the girl lay down on one side. Only by excluding gastrointestinal pathology, it was possible to establish that it was on this side that there was a small area of atypical segmental pneumonia, which "hid" from listening behind the shoulder blade.

Getty Images/Fotobank

Treatment of pneumonia

In most cases, in the treatment of pneumonia in children, antibiotics. The choice of drug depends on the suspected cause (causing microbe), age, and the presence of a possible concomitant pathology: birth defects, pathology gastrointestinal tract etc. In most cases, antibiotics are given at the start of treatment. a wide range. In addition to antibiotics, expectorants are usually used in the treatment of pneumonia, which make the cough productive and facilitate sputum discharge, and also use physiotherapy procedures. In the hospital at severe cases use oxygen, intravenous treatment, combinations of several antibiotics.

Inflammation of the lungs, as we used to call pneumonia, serious condition dangerous to the child's life. Moreover, the younger the baby, the faster pathogenic processes occur in his body, which means that it is necessary to act quickly and competently.

Source: protiv-grippa.com

First of all, you need to understand that only a doctor can make a diagnosis of pneumonia, self-medication in this case is generally unacceptable. Parents are required to make every effort to prevent pneumonia in a child, recognize suspicious symptoms and strictly follow the doctor's recommendations during treatment.

Causes of pneumonia

The cause of pneumonia can be both viruses and bacteria and even fungi. It is impossible to establish which infection led to the development of the disease, relying only on the symptoms and course - for this, a microbiological study is used.

Most often in children, pneumonia is a complication after a viral infection. respiratory infection, cold or flu. A virus or bacterium, penetrating into the bronchi, causes a response of the body, the active production of mucus begins, which contains the main amount of immunoglobulins that come into the fight against foreign objects - viruses or bacteria. In addition, the remains of microbes accumulate in the same mucus, and it is excreted from the body with a cough. Such a cough is called a productive or "wet" cough. If too much sputum is formed, or the bronchi cannot cope with its excretion, mucus may sink into lower divisions lungs, their natural ventilation is disturbed, stagnation and reproduction occurs dangerous bacteria, which cause a progressive inflammatory process of lung tissues.
It is important to understand that pneumonia can develop not only after a respiratory infection. It happens, although much less frequently, primary inflammation of the lungs, when the infection penetrates directly into the lungs, after a serious burn or injury, as a result of any inflammatory process in the body.
Hospital-acquired pneumonia - develops after hospitalization for treatment of other diseases.

Source: temperatyra.ru

What does pneumonia look like?

There is an active release of mucus, first in the nose, and then in the bronchi. It is this mucus that contains the main amount of immunoglobulins that come into the fight against the virus. Partially, the mucus, along with the remnants of microbes, is excreted through the nose - in other words, this is snot, part is removed when coughing and is called sputum. As a rule, the bronchi cope with the removal of sputum, but it happens that it descends into the lungs and mucus stagnates, the ventilation of the lung tissues in a certain area is disturbed, there are favorable conditions to activate and multiply bacteria.

Source: myfamilydoctor.ru Source: microbak.ru Source: microbak.ru

The first signs of pneumonia

Parents should be alerted by the following manifestations:

The deterioration of the child's condition after he has almost recovered, may indicate the onset of pneumonia
Wet, productive cough, in which sputum was well expectorated, was replaced by dry, unproductive. At deep breath coughing starts.
Noticeable typical signs bacterial infection: pale skin even at high temperature, weakness, drowsiness.
The baby's breathing is difficult, if he can already speak, complains of pain in the area chest. There is shortness of breath, even if there is no temperature
The body temperature rises to 39 degrees and above, while antipyretics approved for children, based on paracetamol, almost do not reduce the temperature.

Any of these signs is a reason to consult a doctor who will listen to the child's lungs, and if pneumonia is suspected, he will prescribe an x-ray. It is possible that hospitalization will be required and a course of antibiotics will most likely be prescribed.

Source: protiv-grippa.com

Symptoms of pneumonia in a child 2 - 3 years and older

In preschool children and school age croupous inflammation of the lungs and acute focal pneumonia.

Croupous inflammation of the lungs Disease of an infectious-allergic nature. Occurs against the background of a weakening of the body's resistance (with hypothermia, for example, or with malnutrition). The causative agent can be pneumococci, streptococci, staphylococci, etc.

Croupous inflammation of the lungs begins acutely:

body temperature rises (up to 40 C o)
appears general weakness, malaise, headache
pain in the abdomen, sometimes vomiting
pale skin
shortness of breath increases
when breathing, wheezing is heard in the lungs
coughing up bloody sputum
cough, which is absent at the beginning of the disease, grows and becomes painful

Croupous pneumonia can take a sluggish course, or vice versa, develop very rapidly and end in 3-4 days. The cough becomes wet and not so painful, the sputum is white, wet rales are heard, the temperature returns to normal, shortness of breath disappears.

Acute focal pneumonia As a rule, it develops after an acute respiratory infection.

Develops gradually. Main symptoms:

temperature 38-39 C o
cough changes from dry to wet
chest pain complaints
pallor skin, general weakness

Source: otzyvy.by

Symptoms of pneumonia in infants, a child under one year old

Neonatal pneumonia is quite common, and its manifestations depend on:

period of infection (in utero, during time of birth, after childbirth)
acting agent (microbial pneumonia, viral, etc.)
anatomical and physiological features of the child
term

If the child was infected while still in utero, then the symptoms of the disease appear immediately after birth:

asphyxia
pale covers
bluish face
fever
lethargy, decreased reflexes
frequent regurgitation

When infection occurs during childbirth, The picture of pneumonia appears after 11 days:

the temperature rises
lethargy, difficulty breathing
pallor
cyanosis of the nasolabial triangle
groaning breath
loss of appetite, vomiting
diarrhea may occur
pustular skin lesions develop
possible respiratory arrest

When a newborn is infected after childbirth the beginning of the process is different:

sudden runny nose
high temperature
excessive excitement of the child, he screams and refuses to eat
becomes lethargic after a while
breathing is disturbed, tachycardia may develop

How to treat pneumonia in children

Deal with pneumonia folk remedies impossible, and since this disease has bacterial origin, antibiotics are needed for treatment, which the doctor should prescribe - choose the drug and dosage that correspond to the age of the child and the severity of the inflammation.

When deciding whether to hospitalize a child, the doctor usually takes into account two main factors - age and severity of the disease. So, infants treated exclusively in the hospital. For children older than 3 years, the involvement of organs and systems in the pathogenic process is taken into account: liver enlargement and significant breathing difficulties are a reason for urgent hospitalization. older children at easy course diseases can be treated at home.

Treatment of pneumonia includes two categories - etiological (causative) and symptomatic.

Etiological treatment is aimed at the destruction of the infection that caused the disease. Since more than 70% of cases of pneumonia in children are caused by streptococci and staphylococci, appropriate courses of antibiotics are prescribed for treatment.
Goals symptomatic treatment- alleviate the course of the disease by improving the filtration of the lungs and thus providing the body with oxygen.

It is important to ensure bed rest, cool air in the room and sufficient humidity, drinking regimen - warm alkaline drinking is shown.

The child should not be excessively wrapped up, but it is shown that special drinking regime. It is not necessary to give the child water - it can be tea, juices, compote, fruit drinks in as much as possible.

Feeding with pneumonia should be frequent and in small portions, and in no case should you insist if the baby refuses to eat.

During the recovery period, they provide a sparing regimen, an appropriate diet. Shown stay on fresh air and additional reception vitamins.

In children, unlike an adult, they may not be so pronounced, which is why you need to be very careful, even if it seems to you that the child is just sick with SARS.

Let's start with the disease itself. In fact, pneumonia is an inflammation of the lung tissue, the so-called alveoli, caused by various kinds infections. The disease can develop as right lung, as well as on the left. In some cases, two sides may be covered, and then the course of the disease will be even more difficult.

To notice the first symptoms, you should pay attention to the following manifestations:

High body temperature, more than 38 degrees, which does not subside, or decreases for a short time, more than 3 days. Moreover, it should be noted that pneumonia in early age is not always accompanied by a high temperature, therefore, such a symptom is optional. If suddenly your baby's body temperature has reached 39 degrees or more, immediately call ambulance any time of the day;

The second thing to pay attention to is the child's wet, painful cough. This character of reflex expiration, which is cough, in fact, can speak of inflammatory process in the lungs;

The third indicator of the disease is the blueness of the nasolabial triangle and shortness of breath.

In any case, at the slightest suspicion of pneumonia, call the district pediatrician and if the doctor insists on hospitalization, do not refuse in any case, especially since the symptoms of pneumonia in children are often blurred.

Newborn children are prone to pneumonia in most cases if they were born before the due date, suffered themselves, or the mother during pregnancy infectious diseases, as well as in cases where at birth it was diagnosed intracranial hemorrhage.

Pneumonia baby is even more difficult to detect, and the mother needs to pay attention to changes in the behavior of the baby and carefully monitor the body temperature, because the baby cannot yet complain to you, just as he does not know how to cough. Your task is to immediately inform the doctor about all observations, because in children under 1 year old the disease can develop rapidly, and the condition worsens even by minutes.

If a child is diagnosed with pneumonia, you are in a hospital under the supervision of a doctor, or at home under the supervision of another doctor, and your child has already had an x-ray, and all necessary tests, do not panic. This disease it is treated quickly enough, and if you seek help on time, there will be no consequences for the body. And the doctor will perform the task of how to cure pneumonia, but you only need to follow all the recommendations.

Well antibacterial drugs that the doctor will prescribe, do not try to treat the child yourself. The most common are the cephalosporins, penicillin series, azithromycin, erythromycin, amoxicillin.

Inhalation using a nebulizer, performed both in a hospital and at home. Medicines for the apparatus and their dosage are also prescribed by the doctor, mainly berodual, lazolvan are used.

Chest massage performed by a children's masseur, but under the condition that there is no temperature.

Thanks to integrated approach to treatment, the symptoms of pneumonia in children disappear in 2-3 days, the temperature decreases, shortness of breath and the intensity of wheezing in the lungs decrease.

At the end of treatment, which lasts approximately two weeks, you will be given a follow-up X-ray, and in the case positive result discharged from the hospital. Surround your baby with care and love at such a moment, so you will help him recover from a serious illness.

Anna Gniloskurenko, a pediatrician of the first category, Candidate of Medical Sciences, told us what a vigilant mother needs to know in order not to miss this serious illness.

Inflammation of the lungs (pneumonia) - a rather serious disease, the cause of which can be various factors: viruses, bacteria, protozoa, worms, etc. The reason for the development of pneumonia largely depends on age. Most often, children get sick with bacterial and viral pneumonia, less often atypical (the causative agent is special intracellular microbes) or fungal. In young children, as a rule, the main pathogens are staphylococcus aureus, streptococcus. And also the so-called Haemophilus influenzae (hemophilus influenzae), against which routine vaccination is currently being carried out. For a child under the age of 5, the risk of getting pneumonia is quite high, mainly due to the same Haemophilus influenzae.

Symptoms of pneumonia

The main symptom of pneumonia, of course, is a cough. But the general aggravation of the child's condition should also alert. Look for any of the following signs in your child:

The child has become lethargic, refuses to drink and eat;

The temperature remains stable. But we must not forget that fever is an optional symptom of pneumonia;

The child begins to breathe more often, shortness of breath appears;

Additional muscles begin to participate in the act of breathing, the child breathes as if with tension;

The baby's skin may become pale, and blue may appear around the nose and lips;

Although this symptom is not clinical, there is an observation that a bright red cheek (right or left) may indicate inflammation in the corresponding lung.

Viral pneumonia most often begins with SARS, the appearance of the respiratory disorders described above in this case makes it possible to suspect pneumonia.

See also: PNEUMONIA IN CHILDREN OF THE FIRST YEAR OF LIFE: DIAGNOSIS, PREVENTION, TREATMENT

Diagnosis of pneumonia

To establish the diagnosis of "pneumonia" the doctor will help:

Data on the onset of the disease and how it proceeded until the moment of treatment (the so-called anamnesis);

Data from laboratory examinations. In favor of pneumonia, along with all of the above, such indicators as an increase in ESR and leukocytes in the general blood test, changes in the leukocyte formula will say;

Getty Images/Fotobank

Treatment of pneumonia

In most cases, in the treatment of pneumonia in children, antibiotics. The choice of the drug depends on the alleged cause (causing microbe), age and the presence of a possible comorbidity: congenital malformations, pathology of the gastrointestinal tract, etc. In most cases, broad-spectrum antibiotics are prescribed at the start of treatment. In addition to antibiotics, expectorants are usually used in the treatment of pneumonia, which make the cough productive and facilitate sputum discharge, and also use physiotherapy procedures. In the hospital, in severe cases, oxygen, intravenous treatment, combinations of several antibiotics are used.

How often parents are upset by the runny nose and cough of babies! But it is even more offensive when a simple OCR flows into dangerous pneumonia. How to recognize the symptoms of the disease in time and start effective treatment?

A disease such as pneumonia does not occur in a vacuum. Most often, bacteria are responsible for the disease. Unfortunately, even doctors find it difficult to immediately recognize and hear wheezing that occurs in a child with pneumonia, especially if the baby is too noisy. Therefore, even during a common cold, the task of parents is to monitor general condition child, so as not to miss complications.

Causes of pneumonia

Inflammation of the lungs can be caused by the most various factors, among which viruses, bacteria and even worms that affect the child's weak body. Through the nose or mouth, pathogens enter the baby, reach the bronchi, and then fall below. This is how pneumonia develops. But even in the early days of a runny nose or cough, it is too early to talk about the presence of pneumonia. But if the temperature persists for 3-4 days and the child suffers from a cough, you should call a doctor.

The danger of pneumonia is that all its symptoms are very similar to SARS, because parents, not yet knowing accurate diagnosis, often hope for a common cold and treat the baby cold remedies thus only exacerbating the situation. That is why it is so important to know the symptoms of pneumonia.

Symptoms of pneumonia

The timely start of treatment for pneumonia will result in an earlier recovery of the child and threatens with fewer complications after the illness. At the first signs that appear, immediately the doctor's consultation.

Symptoms of pneumonia include the following:

weakness, decreased appetite and refusal to drink;
high temperature for 3 days;
shortness of breath and rapid breathing;
shortness of breath of the baby, often flaring nostrils;
pale skin, blue around the nose and mouth.

It should be noted that pneumonia can occur without high temperature, but if the cough is prolonged, it especially intensifies at night and in the morning, it is necessary that the specialist carefully listen to the baby and send it for an x-ray.

Treatment of pneumonia

If the baby is still diagnosed with pneumonia, treatment, as a rule, will consist in antibiotic therapy. The drug from a wide spectrum should be selected by the doctor, based on possible causes or the type of bacteria that caused the illness, the age of the child, and possible complications.

Many parents, when diagnosing pneumonia in a baby, are wondering whether to treat the baby at home or go to the hospital. It all depends on the evidence. If the child is under three years of age and if there is a pathology with a severe form of the disease, then right decision there will be a hospital. But if the child is older than three years and there are no visible pathologies, then you can be treated at home, but under the strict supervision of a specialist.

When home treatment Mom's job is to:

full compliance with the treatment regimen recommended by the doctor;
monitor the child's compliance with the drinking regime for sputum discharge;
control the daily routine and nutrition of the child;
mandatory ventilation and wet cleaning in the room;
performing physiotherapy exercises.