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Pneumococci can attack anyone, are common and can be serious. They cause otitis, pneumonia and even sepsis. They are especially dangerous for children and the elderly. Before the era of antibiotics, pneumococcus was the leading cause of pneumonia and mass death. Fortunately, today’s medicine has the means to fight them.
What are pneumococci?
Streptococcus pneumoniae (pneumococci) are bacteria belonging to the group of streptococci. Pneumococci are gram-positive bacteria and have a granular shape. When you observe them under a microscope, you can see that they often form pairs – hence their second name for pneumonia. Pneumococci usually settle in the nose or throat. Their presence is a common cause of bacterial infections in children.
Pneumococci produce a shell that is made of polysaccharides. This feature is important in the pathogenicity of these bacteria, as it allows to avoid the attack of the immune system, and additionally, due to the large diversity of the envelopes in different strains, it is possible to re-infect. Taking into account the composition of the capsule, there are about 90 different serotypes among pneumococci.
Pneumococci – both in humans and animals – live in the mucosa of the upper respiratory tract. According to scientists, about 10% of adults and about 20-40% of children are carriers of these parasites. Pneumococcal disease causes several million cases a year, some of which are fatal. There are as many as 90 varieties of bacteria. They pose a great risk to children under 5 years of age.
How does pneumococcal infection occur?
Pneumococci is transmitted by airborne droplets, i.e. from the host to another person. Infected droplets of mucus and saliva are formed during daily activities, when talking, when laughing and sneezing. The air stream that comes out of the nose and mouth contains droplets containing pneumococci. Interestingly, bacteria can travel up to 1m.
The elderly most often become infected from children. Most cases of pneumococcal disease are recorded in winter and early spring, because in these months it is much easier to get viral infections of the upper respiratory tract, conducive to bacterial infections. Pneumococcal droplets are often found on toys, tables or the floor – then they are still a threat.
Who are most often affected by pneumococci?
Bacteria are the most dangerous for children from 2 months to 2 years of age and the elderly over 65 years of age. People in these age groups tolerate infection the worst, and it is often severe in their case. High-risk groups also include people with congenital and acquired immune disorders, cancer, diabetes mellitus and spleen deficiency, kidney failure, and lung and heart disease.
Pneumococcus – symptoms
Pneumococcal disease is one of the main etiological agents of pneumonia – approximately 50% of community-acquired and approximately 30% of nosocomial infections are caused by these bacteria. Pneumococci can cause invasive infections because they can break the body’s natural immune barriers, such as resistance to phagocytosis and the ability to penetrate the blood through epithelium. The main forms of infection include:
- otitis media – begins to develop after a cold and in most cases must be treated with a strong antibiotic. Otitis media is a symptom of pneumococcal infection that should be treated immediately. Any neglect in this matter may result in partial hearing loss and will be especially painful for the child, as it will hinder his proper development.
- rhinitis – the cause of the disease is mucus stagnation in the nasal cavity due to damage to the ciliary epithelium. Rhinitis is a symptom of pneumococcal infection that can be treated conservatively, with antibiotics, and surgically. Antibiotic therapy is recommended during the treatment of bacterial infections. Untreated sinuses can lead to sepsis and meningitis.
- pneumonia – community acquired pneumonia in most cases is one of the symptoms of pneumococcal infection. The alarm symptoms of the disease include: difficulty breathing and severe pain in the chest. The mainstay of treatment is antibiotic therapy, usually for 7 to 14 days. However, it should be remembered that antibiotics destroy the bacterial flora, so it is also necessary to use probiotics.
- Sepsis – the disease is a symptom of pneumococcal infection, but it is also caused by other viruses. In the course of a disease, an inflammatory reaction develops in the body, leading to failure of some organs. Symptoms of sepsis include
The group of diseases that are also symptoms of pneumococcal infection includes:
- conjunctivitis,
- osteomyelitis,
- peritonitis,
- endocarditis.
Symptoms of pneumococcal infection include, but are not limited to, pneumonia with bacteremia. The patient then begins to feel general weakness, has high fever, chills and chest pain. In addition, he has a cough and suffers from shortness of breath. Another symptom of pneumococcal infection is meningitis, accompanied by fever, headaches, and even disturbed consciousness.
Symptoms of pneumococcal infection in children are similar to those in adults. However, children are slightly more likely to suffer from otitis media (including otitis exudate), which is accompanied by fever, sore throat and hearing loss. In addition, the youngest often lose their appetite and are weakened. Another symptom of pneumococcal infection in children is sinusitis and associated breathing problems.
What is the diagnosis of split pneumonia?
The primary examination is bacteriological examination. By growing this type of bacteria from the cerebrospinal fluid, blood, or respiratory secretions, it is possible to determine if there are bacteria in the body, such as pneumonia. Determining whether you are dealing with a pneumococcal carrier is done by performing a nasal or pharyngeal swab test – pneumococci can also be found in the nose and throat.
Pneumococcus – how to remove it from the body?
Pneumococcal is a bacterium that is cleared in most cases with antibiotics such as penicillin derivatives, cephalosporins, macrolides and fluoroquinolones. However, bacterial strains showing resistance to antibiotics are more and more common. To determine how resistant a bacterium is faced, a bacteriological test is performed beforehand. However, the mere presence of pneumococci in the swab of the nose and throat does not warrant the inclusion of an antibiotic.
Pneumococci – prophylaxis
Free and compulsory vaccinations are used in over 40 countries. A vaccine against pneumococcal bacteria is also available in the Protective Vaccination Program financed from the budget of the Minister of Health. Children between 6 weeks and 2 years of age are subject to mandatory vaccinations, but this applies to children born after December 31, 2016.
The Ministry of Health recommends vaccinating children up to 5 years of age against pneumococcal bacteria, who were born before January 1, 2017, and adults over 50 years of age. The budget of the Minister of Health also funds vaccination of children born before January 1, 2017, suffering from, among others, on:
- heart diseases,
- immunological and hematological diseases,
- congenital asplenia,
- spleen dysfunction,
- chronic renal failure.
The first type of pneumococcal vaccine is a polysaccharide vaccine that contains the purified polysaccharide antigens of the envelopes of 23 pneumococcal serotypes. This type of vaccine is given to people over the age of 65, to children under 2 years of age and to people at risk. The second type of vaccine contains purified polysaccharide antigens – these vaccines are given to children under 2 years of age.
Read also: Bacterial meningitis
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