As the name suggests, pneumonia is an inflammation that occurs in the lungs, mainly affecting the terminal airways, alveoli, and interstitium of the lungs. If the clinical symptoms are severe, the disease will gradually progress, and in severe cases, organ failure may occur, even endangering life. Severe pneumonia poses a great threat to people's health and has many triggering factors. How should it be treated?
1、 What is severe pneumonia?
Severe pneumonia is a serious lung infection, usually caused by bacteria, viruses, or fungi. Severe pneumonia may lead to respiratory distress, hypoxemia, organ failure, and even death. The severity of pneumonia depends on the degree of local inflammation, the spread of lung inflammation, and the degree of systemic inflammatory response. If pneumonia patients experience severe hypoxemia or acute respiratory failure, ventilation support is needed, or if they show symptoms of circulatory failure such as hypotension and shock, as well as other organ dysfunction, they can be considered as severe pneumonia.
2、 What causes severe pneumonia?
1. Viral infection
Viral infection is the fundamental cause of severe pneumonia, usually caused by the invasion of some more serious viruses. When a patient is infected with the virus, their vital signs will rapidly decline, and if the lung infection cannot be controlled in time, it will spread to other parts.
2. Physical fitness
Some people have low physical function, low immunity and resistance. A slight cold can also cause lung infection. When the condition is serious, it can cause severe pneumonia. Generally, there are basic diseases or related factors, such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, diabetes, chronic heart disease, renal insufficiency, chronic liver disease, long-term alcoholism or malnutrition, which are high-risk factors of severe pneumonia. The probability of severe pneumonia in such patients is higher than that in ordinary people.
3. Severe Cold
Due to the fact that colds are caused by viruses and bacteria, bacteria in the air are more active during seasonal changes, which greatly increases the probability of catching a cold. If not taken seriously and treated, it can further develop into severe pneumonia.
4. Spread of inflammation
When patients have their own inflammatory reactions, such as tracheitis and bronchitis, and fail to pay attention to treatment in a timely manner, and spread to the lungs, it can lead to severe pneumonia.
3、 How to treat severe pneumonia?
1. Anti infection treatment
Anti infection treatment is the most important step in the treatment of pneumonia, and appropriate antibiotics, antiviral drugs, or antifungal drugs should be selected according to the type of pathogen for treatment. For patients with unknown pathogens, empirical treatment can be chosen based on clinical experience and local epidemiological data.
2. Support therapy
including oxygen therapy, mechanical ventilation, fluid resuscitation, nutritional support, etc., can maintain stable vital signs of patients and improve organ function. In respiratory support, nasal cannula oxygen therapy, face mask oxygen therapy, etc. can be used. If the patient cannot correct hypoxia through nasal congestion, nasal cannula, mouth nose mask oxygen therapy, or high flow oxygen therapy, an invasive ventilator can be connected through endotracheal intubation to improve the patient's respiratory condition. If the patient experiences low blood pressure, it may cause shock, and it is necessary to use vascular drugs reasonably according to the high and low blood pressure to avoid shock and hypotension.
3. Symptomatic treatment
such as antipyretic and analgesic, cough suppressant and phlegm resolving, etc., to alleviate the patient's symptoms.
4. Prevention of complications
If severe pneumonia patients have acute renal insufficiency and symptoms such as oliguria and anuria, renal replacement therapy can be adopted on the basis of a large amount of fluid replacement to alleviate the symptoms of oliguria and anuria caused by renal insufficiency and renal failure. If a patient develops acute heart failure, cardiac stimulants, diuretics, and vasodilators should be given, and the patient's cardiovascular and renal functions should be closely monitored to detect and treat complications in a timely manner.