Your Lingering Cold Could Be Walking Pneumonia

If you a have lingering cold with a persistent cough, it might be walking pneumonia. You may feel bad, but you can still function. The question is: Should you?

Pneumonia is an umbrella term for a variety of lung infections, some mild, others life-threatening; some caused by bacteria and others by viruses or fungi. Walking pneumonia is the general term for a less-debilitating lung infection, which is easily treated but highly infectious.

Types of Pneumonia

Infections that cause swelling and fluid in the lungs and lead to cough, fever and trouble breathing are called pneumonia, the leading infectious cause of hospitalization and death among U.S. adults. Worldwide, 900,000 children under age 5 die from pneumonia every year.

What kind of pneumonia you have depends on the germ causing it.

• Viral pneumonia typically causes infection in both lungs and is therefore suspected when a healthcare provider using a stethoscope hears congestion, wheezing or crackling on both sides. Most cases of viral pneumonia are mild, particularly in someone healthy, but they can lead to a more serious bacterial infection.
• Bacterial pneumonia may develop in one or both lungs and could occur on its own or develop following a respiratory virus. It’s suspected when one lung sounds clear but the other is congested.
• Fungal pneumonia is rare, accounting for fewer than 1% of all pneumonia cases. While it can be more serious than viral or bacterial forms, it is limited to those living where the fungal organisms thrive or who are immunocompromised.

Diagnosing pneumonia is tricky: Symptoms are similar to a cold or flu. A chest X-ray will reveal the location and extent of the infection but not its cause. Various blood tests might identify the pathogen, but not always. Your health care provider will use a combination of physical examination and tests to confirm a pneumonia diagnosis and determine the best course of treatment. If you have a bacterial pneumonia, that will always include antibiotics.

Walking Pneumonia or a Cold?

Cough. Sore throat. Low-grade fever. Headache. If those are your symptoms, you may suspect you have a chest cold or the flu.. But those are also the symptoms of walking pneumonia, commonly caused by the bacterium M. pneumoniae.

Give it a week or so: Most viral infections will clear in seven to 10 days on their own, but walking pneumonia can last for weeks or even months. So if you’re still showing symptoms after 10 days, even if they remain mild, it’s time to see your healthcare provider. An X-ray that shows more infection than your symptoms warrant will help make the diagnosis.

You Are Contagious

An antibiotic (a five- to 10-day course of oral antibiotics is typical) combined with rest are the best treatments for walking pneumonia. But there’s another reason to stay home as you recover: The bacteria that causes walking pneumonia is highly contagious. It spreads when someone coughs or sneezes, releasing microscopic droplets containing the bacteria. Anyone who breathes in those droplets becomes infected.

Because it is highly contagious, school-age children and young adults living or working in close quarters are most vulnerable, along with anyone recovering from a respiratory illness or diagnosed with a chronic lung disease or weakened immune system.

You can protect others from catching your illness with these basic precautions:

• Stay home if you feel sick
• Cover your coughs and sneezes
• Wash hands frequently
• Disinfect frequently touched surfaces

When we get sick from some pathogens, our bodies develop immunity that protects us from a repeat illness. Other pathogens, including M. pneumoniae, result in only partial immunity. That means you can get walking pneumonia more than once, and there’s no vaccine to prevent it.

This content is not AI generated.