Question

Doug, 60 years old, has a long history of smoking. He’s had a “cold” for several days, but now is feeling worse with a temperature up to 103^O F and “rusty” sputum. Upon exam, he has wheezing with crackles and rhonchi in the lower lungs.

        1  Describe what you expect to see in a Gram stain of his sputum.
2  Fully describe how this disease can be prevented.
3 Name two other microbes commonly causing pneumonia for which there is no vaccine.

Answer 1

1. Gram staining of sputum is the confirmation test for pneumonia . gram stain is performed from the sputum of the infected patient. The presence of neutrophils and greater than ten gram-positive diplococci usually results in the diagnosis of Streptococcus pneumoniae. For further conformation of this organism, it is streaked on blood agar.

2.

There are two different vaccines to prevent pneumococcal disease, the most common bacterial cause of pneumonia.

These cover a wide variety of pneumococcal infections and are recommended for both children and adults, depending on their health conditions.

• pneumococcal conjugate vaccine, or Prevnar
• pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine, or Pneumovax

Prevnar (PCV13) is normally included as part of an infant's routine immunizations.

It is recommended for children under 2 years, adults over 65 years, and those between the ages of 2 and 64 years with certain medical conditions.

Pneumovax (PPSV23) is recommended for children and adults who are at increased risk of developing pneumococcal infections.

This includes:

• adults aged 65 years or older
• people with diabetes
• those with chronic heart, lung, or kidney disease
• people who consume large amounts of alcohol or who smoke
• those without a spleen

Along with vaccinations, physicians recommend:

• regular hand washing
• covering the mouth and nose when coughing or sneezing
• refraining from smoking
• eating healthfully
• exercising 5 days a week
• staying away from the sputum or cough particles of others with pneumonia

3. Usually, bacterial pneumonia is common which is caused by streptococcus pneumonia . Other microorganism causing pneumonia includes - Viral pneumonia: This can result from the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and influenza types A and B, known as the flu.