In children the respiratory tract infections are very common, this later develops into pneumonia. Any child who has pneumonia will show the signs of this disease according to his or her age. These symptoms also vary according to the causative agent that is behind the infection. This also determines the severity of the infection.
Common signs of pneumonia in children are similar to signs in adults; the infection may cause fever, restlessness, headache, irritation and even breathing disorders. The flaring of nostrils and even grunting while breathing are also common disorders because of this infection.
There are symptoms of pneumonia in children they include the general feeling of being unwell, feeling of restlessness, irritation in nature, headache and fever. Sometimes the child suffering from it may develop abdominal pain vomiting and even bit nausea. Chest pain also occurs in people who have pneumonia but this is more common with adults rather than children. Doctors mainly diagnose pneumonia according to the symptoms of the infection, then examination and chest X-ray.
Bacterial pneumonia:
This type of pneumonia is usually caused due to the bacterial infections in the child’s body. This may affect children at any age; these infections have the tendency to develop very quickly. Mostly bacterial pneumonia in children is associated with high fever and phlegm producing cough.
Streptococcus is the most common bacteria that are responsible for the bacterial pneumonia that occurs in children. Toddlers are at the maximum risk of contracting these bacteria. But now to prevent pneumonia in children a vaccine has been developed, it has become a powerful immunization for children. In most of the cases the pneumonial disorders drop after the use of this vaccine.
A penicillin based antibiotic has also been recognized as doctoral treatment for treating the bacterial pneumonia in children.
Viral pneumonia
This type of pneumonia is caused by the viruses and it affects most of the children at all ages, but the maximum effects have been noticed in infants or pre-school aged kids.
The viruses that are causing these infections are mostly not only confided to a single lobe or lungs but they also spread themselves throughout the body. The symptoms won’t differ but the effect range would differ when compared to bacterial infections. So the symptoms may come and go early and there may be variable dip or rise in body temperature.
Viral pneumonia cannot be treated by the antibiotics; the viral pneumonia in children would be treated on itself. The coughing or fever may last for a week’s time.
Mycoplasma pneumonia:
This pneumonia in children ids mostly caused by the pathogen mycoplasma pneumoniae, this is also the most common cause of pneumonia in pre-schooled children. This pathogen rarely affects the infants. The epidemics that are caused by these pathogens are mostly confined to students or children who are a part of any group.
Mycoplasma develops mainly with symptoms such as sore throat, low cold fever and even general feeling of being unwell. The cough tends to get worse as time passes by, sometimes the there is a shortness of breath that can be seen in children. These infections can be confirmed through regular test and X-ray treatment by the doctor.
The treatment of such pneumonia in children can be done by using antibiotics such as roxithromycin and erythromycin.