Treatment FAQ

what is the preferred treatment for pneumonia

by Prof. Demond Anderson Published 2 years ago Updated 2 years ago
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Antibiotics. These medicines are used to treat bacterial pneumonia. It may take time to identify the type of bacteria causing your pneumonia and to choose the best antibiotic to treat it. If your symptoms don't improve, your doctor may recommend a different antibiotic.Jun 13, 2020

Medication

Process 1:

  • Boil water and stir in 5 drops of tea tree or eucalyptus oil.
  • Pour the water into a bowl.
  • Drape a towel over your head, lean over the bowl, and inhale the steam.
  • Do this until Stopped getting oil fragrance.
  • Now blow nose gently to clear the mucus which causes the problem.
  • Repeat 3 times a day.

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Therapy

Ginger is another herb that can help treat pneumonia naturally. With its anti-inflammatory and antibacterial properties, ginger is capable of fighting the infectious microbes that cause pneumonia ( 13 ), ( 14 ). 7. Vegetable Juices

Self-care

What is the strongest antibiotic for pneumonia? Levofloxacin is rapidly becoming a popular choice in pneumonia; this agent is a fluoroquinolone used to treat CAP caused by S aureus, S pneumoniae (including penicillin-resistant strains), H influenzae, H parainfluenzae, Klebsiella pneumoniae, M catarrhalis, C pneumoniae, Legionella pneumophila, or M pneumoniae.

Nutrition

You can try the following measures to feel better:

  • Get lots of rest
  • Drink plenty of fluids, especially hot liquids such as tea
  • Take honey to help with cough, but do not give honey to an infant
  • Use sinus rinses or saline nasal sprays
  • Use lozenges to help with sore throat, but do not give lozenges to children under four
  • Use a humidifier or inhale steam from a hot shower

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What is the best home remedy for pneumonia?

Can you cure pneumonia naturally?

What is the strongest antibiotic for pneumonia?

What over the counter medicine is good for pneumonia?

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What is the best medication for pneumonia?

The first-line treatment for pneumonia in adults is macrolide antibiotics, like azithromycin or erythromycin. In children, the first-line treatment for bacterial pneumonia is typically amoxicillin.

How is typical pneumonia treated?

Treatment depends on the type of pneumonia you have. Most of the time, pneumonia is treated at home, but severe cases may be treated in the hospital. Antibiotics are used for bacterial pneumonia. Antibiotics may also speed recovery from mycoplasma pneumonia and some special cases.

What is the latest treatment for pneumonia?

FDA approves new antibiotic to treat community-acquired bacterial pneumonia. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Xenleta (lefamulin) to treat adults with community-acquired bacterial pneumonia.

How is Covid pneumonia treated?

Are There Treatments for COVID-19 Pneumonia? Pneumonia may need treatment in a hospital with oxygen, a ventilator to help you breathe, and intravenous (IV) fluids to prevent dehydration.

How long does it take for Covid pneumonia to clear up?

For the 15% of infected individuals who develop moderate to severe COVID-19 and are admitted to the hospital for a few days and require oxygen, the average recovery time ranges between three to six weeks.

Will Covid pneumonia go away?

While most people recover from pneumonia without any lasting lung damage, the pneumonia associated with COVID-19 can be severe. Even after the disease has passed, lung injury may result in breathing difficulties that might take months to improve.

What is the strongest antibiotic for pneumonia?

Macrolides. The best initial antibiotic choice is thought to be a macrolide. Macrolides provide the best coverage for the most likely organisms in community-acquired bacterial pneumonia (CAP). Macrolides have effective coverage for gram-positive, Legionella, and Mycoplasma organisms.

How long does it take for lungs to clear from pneumonia?

"Pneumonia is a serious illness that can take quite a toll on a person's lungs and body. It can take anywhere from a week to several months to fully recover from it," says Dr. Rayman Lee, pulmonologist at Houston Methodist.

How Is Bacterial Pneumonia Treated?

Bacterial pneumonia can be treated with antibiotics, which usually help people feel better within a few days to a week.2People who are very old, ve...

How Is Viral Pneumonia Treated?

Viral pneumonias are more likely to be treated at home, and not at the hospital.Viral pneumonia caused by the flu can be treated with an antiviral...

How Is Fungal Pneumonia Treated?

If the course of the pneumonia is slow and your chest X-ray looks unusual, you may have fungal pneumonia. These conditions can be diagnosed with a...

How Are Pneumonia Complications Treated?

Complications may be more common in pneumonia that starts after stomach contents are inhaled into the lungs, a type of condition called aspiration...

What Home Remedies Are There For Pneumonia?

There are no proven alternative treatments to get rid of germs that cause pneumonia, but there may be some home remedies that help with symptoms —...

Is There A Pneumonia Vaccine?

Because pneumonia can develop after a case of the flu, getting the seasonal flu shot can help prevent it.The Centers for Disease Control and Preven...

Can Vitamin C Fight Pneumonia?

The benefits of vitamin C were analyzed in a review published in April 2013 in the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, which looked at three s...

What to do if you have pneumonia in the hospital?

If your pneumonia is so severe that you are treated in the hospital, you may be given intravenous fluids and antibiotics, as well as oxygen therapy, and possibly other breathing treatments.

How long does it take to recover from pneumonia?

Some people feel better and are able to return to their normal routines within a week. For other people, it can take a month or more. Most people continue to feel tired for about a month. Adequate rest is important to maintain progress toward full recovery and to avoid relapse.

What is the best medicine for cough and fever?

Most people can manage their symptoms such as fever and cough at home by following these steps: Control your fever with aspirin, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs, such as ibuprofen or naproxen), or acetaminophen. DO NOT give aspirin to children.

How to get rid of an infection?

If your cough is preventing you from getting the rest you need, ask your doctor about steps you can take to get relief. Drink warm beverages, take steamy baths and use a humidifier to help open your airways and ease your breathing.

How to keep germs from spreading?

Cover your mouth and nose when you cough, promptly dispose of tissues in a closed waste container and wash your hands often .

What to do if you are a smoker and have trouble staying smokefree?

This includes smoking, secondhand smoke and wood smoke. Talk to your doctor if you are a smoker and are having trouble staying smokefree while you recover. This would be a good time to think about quitting for good. Get lots of rest.

What is the best treatment for pneumonia?

Over-the-counter remedies that are typically used to help treat the symptoms of pneumonia include: 1 Fever reducers/pain relievers: Tylenol (acetaminophen), Motrin or Advil (ibuprofen), Aleve (naproxen), or aspirin will help bring your fever down and decrease any pain you might have. 14  Remember to never give aspirin to children because it increases their risk of developing Reye's syndrome, a rare but potentially life-threatening illness. 2 Expectorants: These medications help loosen and move mucus out of your lungs. 15  Your doctor probably won't want you to take cough suppressants, or at the very least, will only want you to take a low dose because you need to be able to cough to move the infection out.

How to treat pneumonia?

Most times, pneumonia 1  can be managed with home remedies, but other treatments may be necessary, including over-the-counter medications, antibiotics, antivirals, antifungals, and breathing treatments. In some cases, hospitalization may be necessary.

What does walking pneumonia mean?

It's often referred to as "walking pneumonia," meaning that you don't feel so sick that you have to stay in bed all day. Technically, mycoplasma pneumonia 24 is caused by a bacteria and in some cases is treated with antibiotics, though it often goes away on its own without treatment as well.

How to treat aspiration pneumonia?

Aspiration Pneumonia: Aspiration pneumonia 25 is treated by removing the foreign object, if possible, and stopping the aspiration of more food or fluids. This may mean that you're not permitted to eat and will be given calories and fluids through an IV or via a feeding tube.

What is the best way to relieve mucus in the lungs?

Breathing Treatments: Your doctor may also prescribe an inhaler or a nebulizer treatment to help loosen the mucus in your lungs and help you breathe better. 11  The most common medication for this is Ventolin, ProAir, or Proventil (albuterol).

Can antibiotics help with pneumonia?

Viral Pneumonia: If you're diagnosed with viral pneumonia, antibiotics won't help . Most importantly, you need to rest and take care of yourself. 21  If you try to keep up with your usual routine, it will most likely take you longer to recover, so do your best to slow down and get extra rest.

Can you use complementary medicine for pneumonia?

Complementary Medicine (CAM) Because pneumonia can be a life-threatening illness, you should never replace regular treatments with alternative therapy. However, complementary alternative medicine (CAM) can complement conventional treatments when they're used together. 18 .

What is the best treatment for pneumonia?

Viral pneumonia caused by the flu can be treated with an antiviral medication called Tamiflu (oseltamivir), but for many other viral pneumonias, your doctor can only treat the symptoms. This means drinking lots of fluids, eating well, resting, taking medication for pain or fever, and treating breathing difficulties.

What causes pneumonia in the elderly?

Other causes of pneumonia include bacteria and fungi. Your doctor will outline a plan that's specific to you, considering the type of pneumonia you have, the severity of the condition, your age, and your overall health. From there, you'll know whether you can be treated at home or at the hospital, and whether or not you need antibiotics.

What is the most common type of pneumonia that starts after stomach contents are inhaled into the lungs?

Complications may be more common in pneumonia that starts after stomach contents are inhaled into the lungs, a type of condition called aspiration pneumonia. Another dangerous variation is necrotizing pneumonia, a bacterial pneumonia that can result from a large number of pathogens, including staphylococcus. ( 6)

How many types of fungi cause pneumonia?

These conditions can be diagnosed with a blood test that shows your body is making antibodies to the fungus. More than 10 types of fungi can cause fungal pneumonia, which is more common in people with weakened immune systems. ( 5)

Can you treat pneumonia with medication?

Medication is usually ineffective in treating the viral types of pneumonia — doctor s will instead treat the symptoms — though these infections also tend to be milder and clear up on their own. Working closely with your doctor and following all directions will speed your recovery.

What is the best medicine for pneumonia?

To treat outpatients for pneumonia, the Infectious Diseases Society of America recommends, in no particular order, a macrolide, doxycycline, amoxicillin (with or without clavulanic acid), or a quinolone.

What causes pneumonia in the lungs?

S. pneumoniae causes infection of the middle ear, sinuses, trachea, bronchi, and lungs by direct spread of organisms from the nasopharyngeal site of colonization and causes infection of the CNS, heart valves, bones, and joints by hematogenous spread; the peritoneal cavity may be infected by local extension along the female genital tract or hematogenously. Infection of the pleura or peritoneal cavity and also of the CNS may occur by direct extension or by hematogenous spread; in any individual case, the route of infection can usually not be determined.

How often should I use port scoring for pneumonia?

The importance of the decision to hospitalize or even to directly admit to intensive care cannot be overemphasized, and Pneumonia Patient Outcomes Research Team (PORT) scoring should be used to help decide whether hospitalization is needed. Pneumococcal pneumonia caused by organisms that are susceptible or intermediately resistant to penicillin responds to treatment with penicillin, one million units intravenously every 4 hours, ampicillin, 1g every 6 hours, or ceftriaxone, 1g every 24 hours. Ease of administration favors the use of ceftriaxone. The principal problem is that at the time treatment is begun, the etiology is likely not to be known. If a Gram stain of sputum at admission shows pneumococci, ceftriaxone is the preferred drug, unless the patient is extremely ill, in which case vancomycin should be added until the susceptibility of the infecting organism is known.

How many pneumococci are susceptible to penicillin?

93% of all pneumococci are susceptible to penicillin if given parenterally or amoxicillin if given orally; 5% are intermediate, and 2% are resistant. In cases of meningitis, 65% of organisms are susceptible to penicillin and 35% are resistant (no intermediate resistance is defined).

How long can you take amoxicillin for tympanic membrane?

In the absence of a perforated tympanic membrane or some other complication, therapy need not be continued beyond 5 days.

What is the MIC of penicillin?

For infections other than those involving the CNS that are treated with parenteral penicillin, susceptibility, intermediate resistance and resistance to penicillin are now defined as mean inhibitory concentration (MIC) less than 2μg/mL, 4μg/mL, and greater than or equal to 8μg/mL, respectively.

Do statins help with meningitis?

Corticosteroids, statins, and macrolides all exhibit a variety of anti-inflammatory effects. The use of steroids in treating meningitis has been discussed earlier in this chapter. Randomized prospective studies have, in fact, shown no benefit from the addition of corticosteroids in treating pneumonia, but a large prospective study is currently underway within the US Veterans Affairs health care system. Patients who are already on treatment with a statin at the time of admission for pneumococcal pneumonia have better outcomes than those who are not; a prospective study in which patients are randomized to receive a statin has not been reported. Several case control studies have compared outcomes in patients receiving a macrolide and a beta-lactam with those in patients receiving a macrolide alone. Results have favored the former group but, once again, a prospective study has not been done.

What is invasive pneumococcal infection?

Some pneumococcal infections are “invasive.” Invasive disease means that germs invade parts of the body that are normally free from germs. Invasive disease is usually very serious and can sometimes result in death.

Should older children get pneumococcal?

In certain situations, older children and other adults should also get pneumococcal vaccines. Below is more information about who should and should not get each type of pneumococcal vaccine. Talk to your or your child’s doctor about what is best for your specific situation.

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Diagnosis

Clinical Trials

Lifestyle and Home Remedies

Preparing For Your Appointment

Medically reviewed by
Dr. Govind Desai
Your provider will work with you to develop a care plan that may include one or more of these treatment options.
The course of treatment depends on the cause of infection, symptoms and severity of the condition.
Medication

Antibiotics: To treat bacterial infection.

Levofloxacin . Azithromycin


Antivirals: To treat viral infection.

Oseltamivir . Zanamivir


Antifungals: If the infection is caused by fungi.

Fluconazole . Itraconazole


Analgesics: To ease symptoms of pain.

Acetaminophen . Ibuprofen


Cough suppressants: To relieve cough.

Dextromethorphan . Codeine

Therapy

Oxygen therapy:To maintain oxygen level in the blood.

Self-care

Always talk to your provider before starting anything.

  • Take rest
  • Drink plenty of fluids
  • Do not over strain the body

Nutrition

Foods to eat:

  • Increase fluid intake; broth based soups provide relief from symptoms
  • Take plenty of fruits and vegetables
  • Consume lean proteins such as chicken

Foods to avoid:

  • Refined starch and sugar; pasteurized milk and dairy products

Specialist to consult

Pulmonologist
Specializes in diagnosing and treating conditions that affect the respiratory system.

Home Remedies and Lifestyle

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Your doctor will start by asking about your medical history and doing a physical exam, including listening to your lungs with a stethoscope to check for abnormal bubbling or crackling sounds that suggest pneumonia. If pneumonia is suspected, your doctor may recommend the following tests: 1. Blood tests.Blood tests are us…
See more on mayoclinic.org

Prescriptions

  • Explore Mayo Clinic studiestesting new treatments, interventions and tests as a means to prevent, detect, treat or manage this condition.
See more on mayoclinic.org

Over-The-Counter Therapies

  • These tips can help you recover more quickly and decrease your risk of complications: 1. Get plenty of rest.Don't go back to school or work until after your temperature returns to normal and you stop coughing up mucus. Even when you start to feel better, be careful not to overdo it. Because pneumonia can recur, it's better not to jump back into your routine until you are fully rec…
See more on mayoclinic.org

Hospitalization

  • You may start by seeing a primary care doctor or an emergency care doctor, or you may be referred to a doctor who specializes in infectious diseases or in lung disease (pulmonologist). Here's some information to help you get ready for your appointment and know what to expect.
See more on mayoclinic.org

Complementary Medicine

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Most cases of pneumonia can be treated at home with the following measures: 1. Get as much rest as possible. If you have pneumonia,2you need rest so that your body can fight the infection and heal. Don't try to do everything you normally do and rest when you feel tired. The more you're able to rest, the quicker you will get bett…
See more on verywellhealth.com

Type-Specific

  • There are a variety of prescriptions your healthcare provider may give you, again, depending on the type of pneumonia you have and your symptoms. Antibiotics: If you have bacterial or aspiration pneumonia, your healthcare provider will prescribe an antibiotic.10Finding the best antibiotic depends on being able to figure out which type of bacteria you've been infected with, s…
See more on verywellhealth.com

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