5 Interesting Facts of Pneumococcal pneumonia
- Disease caused by pneumococcus (Streptococcus pneumoniae)
- Most common cause of community-acquired pneumonia (incidence varies worldwide and may vary by changing rates of pneumococcal vaccination and smoking, but among cases with a diagnosed pathogen, pneumococcal pneumonia still predominates)
- Symptoms similar to those of Mycoplasma pneumoniaeinfection include fever, cough, and pharyngitis
- Patients with invasive pneumococcal disease are typically more ill appearing, and laboratory findings demonstrate a leukocytosis with left shift
- Clinical course and response to empiric treatment most often serve to differentiate the 2 infections
- Unlike Mycoplasma pneumoniae infection, cough may be productive of purulent or blood-tinged sputum, pleuritic chest pain is common, and both physical examination and chest radiograph suggest dense consolidation
- Unlike Mycoplasma pneumoniae disease, Streptococcus pneumoniae infections respond well to sulfonamides or β-lactam antibiotics
- Microbiological testing, if performed, provides definitive differentiation