Bacterial pneumonia history and symptoms

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Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]; Associate Editor(s)-in-Chief: Arooj Naz

History

It is important for health care providers to assess a patient's risk factors, including comorbidities and any conditions that may provide further information regarding the underlying cause of pneumonia. Affected individuals should be asked about:

• Duration of symptoms
• Presence of cough
  • Dry
  • Productive (Inquire about the amount and colour)
  • Hemoptysis
• Details pertaining to fever
  • Temperature
  • Duration
  • Pattern
  • Presence or absence of any chills
• Associated chest pain

It may also be helpful to inquire about certain exposures:

• Exposure to air-conditioning or water coolers and tanks (may indicate a Legionella pneumonia infection)
• Time spent in crowded locations such as homeless shelters, jails and or prisons (may indicate a Streptococcus pneumonia, Mycobacteria, Mycoplasma, and Chlamydia infection)
• Animal Exposure (eg, Chlamydia psittaci is found in individuals with exposure to birds)
• Recent sick contacts

Symptoms

Common Symptoms

• Fever
• Chills
• Productive cough
• Dyspnea
• Chest pain (pleuritic)
• Weight loss

Elderly patients may experience:

• Weakness
• Lethargy
• Altered mental status
• Dyspepsia
• Absence of fever

Uncommon Symptoms

• Fatigue
• Headache
• Myalgia
• Arthralgia
• Diarrhea and hyponatremia (indicative of Legionella)
• Anemia and jaundice (hemolytic anemia) (indicative of Mycoplasma)