Pneumonia
Treatment of pneumonia is all about treating the infection and stopping any complications from arising. Different treatments depend on the severity and type of pneumonia you have developed, your age and your overall health.
Antibiotics
In order to treat bacterial pneumonia, you will be prescribed antibiotics. After your doctor has determined the type of bacteria that is causing your pneumonia they will recommend the best kind of antibiotic to treat it. If you are otherwise healthy you may be prescribed macrolide (Doxy) or amoxicillin. If the antibiotics don’t seem to be improving or changing your symptoms then your doctor may put you on another type of antibiotic.
Cough Medicine
Pneumonia can produce a horrible cough that can stop you from resting. Cough can be good for pneumonia as it loosens and move fluids around your lungs, but it can hurt and be extremely uncomfortable. It’s recommended to not eliminate your cough completely, and so taking cough medicine can help to sooth your chest without getting rid of the cough completely.
Pain Reliever and Fever Reducers
This can be taken as and when needed if you have a fever and to bring you more comfort. Medication such as aspirin, ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin IB, etc.) and acetaminophen (Tylenol, etc.) can reduce the pain caused by pneumonia and can be bought over-the-counter.
Hospitalization
If you develop pneumonia you might have to admitted into hospital if you require the care:
- If you are sixty-five or older
- If you struggle to remember or place the time, people, or places
- If your kidneys are no longer functioning
- If your systolic blood pressure is lower than 90 mm Hg or your diastolic blood pressure is lower than 60 mm Hg
- If your breathing comes too fast such as thirty breaths or more for one minute
- If you require assistance when breathing
- If your temperature has dropped below normal
- If your heart rate is lower than 50 or higher than 100
There’s a possibility that you could be taken to the intensive care unit (ICU) if you require being put on a ventilator (breathing machine) or if your symptoms worsen to the extreme. Children are often hospitalized with pneumonia if they are younger than two months old, sleep excessively, have trouble breathing, or appear dehydrated.
Things to do at Home
You can do a couple of things to help aid your recovery and lower your risk of complications.
- Rest — stay at home and rest until your temperature returns to normal and mucus stops being produced as you cough. Take it easy, even as you start to feel better as pneumonia can recur.
- Hydrated yourself — keep drinking lots of fluids, especially water, in order to dislodge the mucus in your lungs.
- Complete courses — make sure to keep taking the medication you have been prescribed. You must complete the course or pneumonia may come back.
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