4/22/2017 WhatisWalkingPneumonia?

What is Walking Pneumonia?

Walkingpneumonia"soundslikeitcouldbethenameofascifihorrorflick.Butit's
actuallytheleastscarykindofpneumonia.Itcanbemilderthantheothertypes,andyou
usuallydonthavetostayinthehospital.Youcouldhavewalkingpneumoniaandnot
evenknowit.

It Might Feel Like a Cold

Walkingpneumoniaishowsomepeopledescribeamildcaseofpneumonia.Yourdoctor
mightcallitatypicalpneumoniabecauseitsnotlikemoreseriouscases.

Alunginfectionisoftentoblame.Lotsofthingscancauseit,including:

Bacteria
Viruses
Fungi
Chemicals
Inhaledfood

WalkingpneumoniausuallyisduetoabacteriumcalledMycoplasmapneumoniae.

Ifyouhavethiscondition,youprobablywonthavetostayinbedorinthehospital.You
mightevenfeelgoodenoughgotoworkandkeepupyourregularroutine,justasyou
mightwithacold.

Who Gets It?

Anyonecangetit.Walkingpneumoniafrommycoplasmaismostcommoninchildren,
militaryrecruits,andadultsyoungerthan40.
Peoplewholiveandworkincrowdedplacessuchasschools,dorms,militarybarracks,
andnursinghomesaremorelikelytobeexposedtoit.

Latesummerandfallarethemostcommontimesofyearforyoutogetwalking
pneumonia.Butinfectionscanhappenthroughouttheyear.

Is It Contagious?

Yes.Itspreadsthroughsneezesorcoughs.Butitspreadsslowly.Ifyougetit,youcould
becontagious(whichmeansyoucouldspreadittootherpeople)forupto10days.

Researchersthinkittakesalotofclosecontactwithaninfectedpersonforyoutodevelop
walkingpneumonia.Still,therearewidespreadoutbreakseveryfourtoeightyears.

Symptoms
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Symptomsgenerallystart15to25daysafteryoureexposedtomycoplasmaandslowly
worsenovertwotofourdays.Youmighthave:

Chestpainwhenyoutakeadeepbreathin
Coughthatmaycomeinviolentspasms
Mildflulikesymptomssuchasfeverandchills
Sorethroat
Headache
Tiredness
Lingeringweaknessthatmaylastafterothersymptomsgoaway

Somepeoplewithwalkingpneumoniamayalsohaveanearinfection,anemia,oraskin
rash.

WebMD Medical Reference | Reviewed by Carol DerSarkissian on December 11, 2016

Sources
SOURCES:
FamilyDoctor.org: "Walking Pneumonia."
American Lung Association: "Pneumonia."
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute: "Pneumonia."
New York State Department of Health: "Mycoplasma Infection (walking pneumonia, atypical pneumonia)."
Broward County Florida Medical Examiner & Trauma Services Division: "Walking (a) Pneumonia."
CDC: Mycoplasma pneumoniae Infection.

2016 WebMD, LLC. All rights reserved.

Diagnosis

Yourdoctorwillmakethediagnosisaftertalkingwithyouandgivingyouaphysicalexam.

Tellheraboutyoursymptomsandhowlongyouvehadthem.Shemayalsoaskyou
aboutwhereyouworkandwhetheranyoneathomeoratworkisalsosick.

Youdoctorwilllistentoyourchestwithastethoscope.Shemayalsoaskyoutogeta
chestXrayandabloodtest.Thereisabloodtestthatcanidentifyamycoplasma
infection.Youprobablywontgetthattestthough,unlessthereisawidespreadoutbreak
inyourarea.

Anotherbloodtestcanfindanincreaseincertainimmunesubstancescalledcold
agglutinins.Thistestwon'tconfirmthatyouhavewalkingpneumonia,butitcansuggestit.

Treatment
Manyoverthecountermedicinesusedforcoldsandflusmaynotrelieveallofyour
symptoms.

Whenyouseeyourdoctor,shewilldecideifyouneedantibiotics .Ifshedoesstartyou
onthem,youshouldbegintofeelbetterwithinafewdays.

Tellyourdoctoraboutanymedicinesyoutakeorplantotake.Youshouldalsodrinkplenty
offluidsandgiveyourselflotsoftimetorest.
Can I Get It More Than Once?
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4/22/2017 WhatisWalkingPneumonia?

Itspossible.Youmighthavesomeimmunityforawhile,butit'sunclearhowlongitlasts.If
youdogetitagain,itmaybemilderthanthefirsttime.

Prevention

Thereisnovaccineformycoplasmainfections,soyoucantcompletelypreventit.There
arethingsyoucando,though,toreduceyourchancesofgettingit:

1.Exercise,eatawellbalanceddiet,andgetenoughsleep.Doingthesethingswill
helpkeepyourbodyhealthyandbetterabletoresistinfection.
2.Washyourhandsoften.Itsoneofthebestwaystopreventgermsfromspreading.
3.Don'tsmoke.Smokingdamagesthelungs,anddamagedlungs aremorelikelyto
getinfected.
4.Coveryourmouthwithyoursleevewhenyoucoughorsneeze.Andaskothersto
dothesame.Coughingandsneezingarethemainwaysthattheseinfectionsare
spread.

WebMD Medical Reference | Reviewed by Carol DerSarkissian on December 11, 2016

Sources
SOURCES:
FamilyDoctor.org: "Walking Pneumonia."
American Lung Association: "Pneumonia."
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute: "Pneumonia."
New York State Department of Health: "Mycoplasma Infection (walking pneumonia, atypical pneumonia)."
Broward County Florida Medical Examiner & Trauma Services Division: "Walking (a) Pneumonia."
CDC: Mycoplasma pneumoniae Infection.

2016 WebMD, LLC. All rights reserved.

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