What is Pneumonia?
Pneumonia is a common health problem affecting many people worldwide. According to the “Top 20 Pneumonia Facts” published by the American Thoracic Society in 2019, about one million Americans need hospitalization every year due to pneumonia. Among whom, 50,000 patients die from the disease. Triggered by microbes such as bacteria, viruses, or fungi, people with pneumonia have an infection in their lungs, which leads to inflamed alveoli (air sacs). Hence, these balloon-shaped gas exchangers become fluid-filled or pus-filled, making you breathe difficultly. Bacterial pneumonia, viral pneumonia, and mycoplasma pneumonia are the three main types. Though pneumonia is life-threatening to everyone, children less than five years old and seniors over sixty-five have a higher mortality rate because they have weakened immune systems. [1]
