There are many pneumonia causes and risk factors that can facilitate the development of the disease. Pneumonia is inflammation and infection of the lungs, generating symptoms like cough, headache, chest discomfort when breathing, difficulty breathing, shortness of breath, muscle pain, fever and a general state of fatigue. Although the symptoms of pneumonia may not appear to be serious, resembling those of flu or cold, some forms of the disease need immediate medical assistance and treatment.
Pneumonia can be developed by anyone, regardless of age and sex. Around 3 million people in the United States are diagnosed with pneumonia each year. Despite the fact that some forms of pneumonia can be very mild, other forms of the disease can actually be life-threatening. Statistics indicate that around 5 percent of hospitalized people with pneumonia die each year as a result of complication.
There are various pneumonia causes. Typical forms of pneumonia are developed due to infection with viruses (influenza, herpes simplex virus, varicella-zoster, adenovirus, respiratory syncytial virus), gram-positive bacteria (Streptococcus pneumoniae, Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus...