Signs of pneumonia in the elderly
Jan 16, 2012 General
When the pneumonia affects one of these lobes, it is often referred to as lobar pneumonia. Your decision to seek medical care depends on the severity of signs of pneumonia and other factors of exposure. Bacteria from the upper airways or, less commonly, from hematogenous spread, find their way to the lung parenchyma. In the elderly, confusion may be the most prominent symptom.
Your doctor may want to make sure your chest x-ray becomes normal again after you take a course of antibiotics. Hospital-Acquired Pneumonia tends to be more serious, because patients in the hospital already have weakened defense mechanisms, and the infecting organisms are usually more dangerous than those encountered in the community. Antibiotics are the usual treatment when a child is suspected of having bacterial pneumonia.