How do pneumonia spread

Sharing drinking glasses and eating utensils, and touching used tissues or handkerchiefs of an infected person also can spread pneumonia. If someone in your home has a respiratory infection or throat infection, keep their drinking glasses and eating utensils separate from those of other family members, and wash your hands well and often, especially if you're handling used tissues or dirty handkerchiefs.

Some types of pneumonia can be prevented by vaccines. Kids usually get routine vaccines against Haemophilus influenzae , pneumococcus , and whooping cough beginning at 2 months of age. The flu vaccine is recommended for all kids ages 6 months through 19 years. When possible, keep kids away from anyone with symptoms stuffy or runny nose, sore throat, cough of a respiratory infection. Reviewed by: Kate M. Cronan, MD. Larger text size Large text size Regular text size.

What Is Pneumonia? The signs and symptoms of pneumonia may include: fever cough chills fast breathing breathing with grunting or wheezing sounds working hard to breathe vomiting chest pain belly pain being less active loss of appetite in older kids or poor feeding in babies What Causes Pneumonia?

How Is Pneumonia Diagnosed? How Is Pneumonia Treated? How Can Parents Help? People often have small amounts of germs in their nose and throat that can be passed on through:.

The pneumococcal vaccine protects against Streptococcus pneumoniae, which is the most common cause of bacterial pneumonia. Find out more about who should have the pneumococcal vaccine. The pneumococcal vaccine is usually given as part of the routine NHS child vaccination schedule. If you're unsure if you or your child has been given the vaccine, check with your GP. Page last reviewed: 18 November Next review due: 18 November You could also breathe in the droplets and bring them into your own breathing tract.

The time that a person may pass along pneumonia varies depending on the type and how he or she acquired it. Additionally, some types of pneumonia are much more contagious than others. Two examples of highly contagious strains of this illness are mycoplasma and mycobacterium. Once a person who has pneumonia starts on antibiotics, he or she only remains contagious for the next 24 to 48 hours.

This can be longer for certain types of organisms, including those that cause the disease tuberculosis. In that case, someone can remain contagious for up to two weeks after starting on antibiotics. When someone has viral pneumonia, the contagious period starts to subside when the symptoms do. This is particularly true of fever. Keep in mind that someone who had pneumonia may still cough occasionally for several weeks, even after he or she is no longer contagious.

The incubation period is the time from when you pick up the pneumonia virus to when you actively display symptoms. Many variables affect this, including the type of pneumonia, your general health, and your age. You may assume that you have a cold or the flu when symptoms begin because they are quite similar. However, they last longer and become more severe with time instead of less.