Pneumococcal Disease

Pneumococcal disease is a bacterial infection caused by the bacteria called streptococcus pneumoniae. It is relatively common. Pneumococcal disease can affect different parts of your body. Depending on where the bacteria has infected will vary your symptoms and the severity of the illness. It usually is mild, but in some cases can become life threatening and extremely severe.

Pneumococcal disease is easily spreadable, and you can spread it without having symptoms yourself. It is spread through coughing, sneezing, and close contact. There are more than 100 different strains of pneumococcal pneumonia. There are two main different types. One is noninvasive which is more common and less serious. Invasive is severe, occurs in the blood, bone, brain, or other major organs like the lungs.

Risk Factors

Anyone can develop pneumococcal pneumonia. Children under the age of 2 years old, and adults over the age of 65 years are at higher risk of developing this bacterial infection. If you have a chronic condition such as heart disease, lung disease, kidney disease, diabetes, sickle cell disease, HIV, certain cancers or a cerebrospinal fluid leak you are also at a raised risk.

Symptoms

Pneumococcal disease can cause many different things such as sinus infections, pneumonia, blood infections, bacterial meningitis, ear infections, bone infections, joint infections, and sepsis. Depending on what is affected by the bacteria will depend on the severity of your sickness, as well as the symptoms that may be present. General symptoms can include a high fever, chills, cough, shortness of breath, chest pain, stiff neck, disorientation, sensitivity to light, headaches, or low appetite. You may also have nasal congestion, loss of smell, ear pain, or fatigue. Not every case of pneumonia is pneumococcal pneumonia.

Diagnosis

Symptoms of pneumococcal pneumonia can look like a lot of other illnesses. Especially if it is causing you a sinus infection or an ear infection. Depending on your symptoms will depend on what tests your doctor will want to perform to get you a diagnosis. Your doctor will first listen to your symptoms. They may do a physical exam on you. Depending on what they find they may suggest doing a blood test, urine test, or phlegm test. A chest X-ray may be done if your lungs are compromised. In some severe cases they may suggest doing a spinal tap.

Treatment

Early diagnosis and treatment can be lifesaving. The first course of treatment for pneumococcal disease is antibiotics. It is important that your doctor knows what strain of pneumococcal disease you have because different types will need to be treated with different types of antibiotics. About one third of cases may be antibiotic resistant in some way, so it is important to take your antibiotics as prescribed so that your doctor knows if the treatment is working or not. You can take pain-relieving medications for treatment. It is important to rest and make sure you are drinking plenty of fluids. In severe cases or bacterial meningitis cases you may be hospitalized for treatment and continuous monitoring.

Prevention

There are more than 100 strains of pneumococcal disease. There is no way to guarantee prevention of all strains. There is a pneumococcal vaccine that you can get yearly that will help reduce your risk. At this time children who are younger than two years old, adults with chronic diseases, adults that are over 65 years old, or someone who lives or works in a long term, or nursing care facility are recommended to get the pneumococcal vaccine. There are usually no side effects with the vaccine. You are not at risk of developing the disease from getting the vaccine. You may develop pain, swelling, or tenderness where you get the vaccine but that usually goes away in a day or two.

Outcomes

Recovery depends on the type of bacteria you have as well as the severity. Usually you start to feel better after a few days of taking your antibiotics. If you don’t get treatment quickly, or your case is severe pneumococcal pneumonia can result in chronic illness or disability, but this is rare and only severe cases.