Injury	Disease	Nutrition	Poison	Symptoms	Surgery	Test	Special Topic

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Pneumococci organism	Lungs	Pneumonia	White nail syndrome
Pneumococcal pneumonia	Respiratory system

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Overview	Symptoms	Treatment	Prevention

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Pneumonia

Alternative Names

Pneumonitis; Bronchopneumonia; Community-acquired pneumonia

Prevention

• Wash your hands frequently, especially after blowing your nose, going to the bathroom, diapering, and before eating or preparing foods.
• Don't smoke. Tobacco damages your lung's ability to ward off infection.
• Wear a mask when cleaning dusty or moldy areas

Vaccines can help prevent pneumonia in children, the elderly, and people with diabetes, asthma, emphysema, HIV, cancer, or other chronic conditions:

• Pneumococcal vaccine (Pneumovax, Prevnar) prevents Streptococcus pneumoniae.
• Flu vaccine prevents pneumonia and other infections caused by influenza viruses. It must be given yearly to protect against new viral strains.
• Hib vaccine prevents pneumonia in children from Haemophilus influenzae type b.

Taking deep breaths may help prevent pneumonia if you are in the hospital -- for example, while recovering from surgery. Often, a breathing device will be given to you to assist in deep breathing.

If you have cancer or HIV, you should talk to your doctor about additional ways to prevent pneumonia.

Review Date: 11/10/2003
Reviewed By: Jacqueline A. Hart, M.D., Department of Internal Medicine, Newton-Wellesley Hospital, Boston, Ma., and Senior Medical Editor, A.D.A.M., Inc. and Steven Angelo, M.D., Assistant Professor of Medicine, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.

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