Inflammation of the lungs (pneumonia) is a disease in which inflammation occurs in the tissues of the lungs. It can arise as an independent disease, and in the form of complications of another, for example, measles, influenza, whooping cough, etc. The disease is especially dangerous for children, because of the physiological characteristics of the child's body.
Inflammation of the lungs in a child, the symptoms of which are described below, develops when several types of viruses and microbes interact. An important role in the development of this disease is played by poor living conditions, malnutrition, hypotrophy, exudative diathesis, rickets, hypovitaminosis and a number of other diseases.
The first signs of pneumonia in the baby are manifested 2-7 days after the moment of infection. During this period, microbes multiply in the respiratory tract. The first symptoms are the same as with a cold: a slight increase in temperature, nasal congestion, runny nose, a slight cough, redness of the throat and eyes. Within 2-4 days, these signs are on the decline or even pass. Also the child's inflammation can begin without the above symptoms.
In connection with the peculiarities of the structure of the children's respiratory tract, pneumonia in young children can take place in severe form. The nose and nasopharynx in children are small, and the nasal passages and holes are narrow, so the inhaled air is poorly cleaned and warmed. Children's trachea and larynx have narrow lumens. Children's bronchi have little elastic fibers, which contributes to the rapid development of inflammatory processes in them.
At an early age, acute inflammation in mild form is extremely rare, with symptoms being minor. If a child has such signs as a small temperature, a slight cyanosis around the mouth and nose, shortness of breath, pallor of the skin, parents should definitely turn to the pediatrician. Timely treatment, provided that the child is well developed and strong, will cope with the disease in 10-12 days.
If the treatment of a mild form of pneumonia is not started in time, a medium-heavy or severe form of pneumonia may develop. Symptoms of a moderate form of pneumonia are a restless state of the child, pallor of the skin, obvious blueness of the face, severe shortness of breath, weakness, cough. There is also a disturbance in the rhythm of breathing, which manifests itself in its irregularity, it becomes superficial and frequent. Body temperature rises to 37.5-38.5 degrees. The course of the disease of this form (with adequate treatment) lasts 3-4 weeks.
Untimely and insufficient treatment of the child can cause the development of severe forms of pneumonia. It is characterized by high fever, coughing, shortness of breath, pronounced distention, cyanotic lips, nose, ears and nails.
Because of shortness of breath, the child experiences oxygen starvation, which leads to disruption of metabolic processes in organs and tissues. Sometimes there is a purulent inflammation of the meninges, pleura.
Extremely dangerous and difficult inflammation of the lungs occurs in premature infants. This disease can even carry the danger of a child's life. In this case, the symptoms of pneumonia in such children are weakly expressed and may be unnoticeable for unaware parents. Babies may refuse to breast-feed, they have cyanosis during feeding, they do not gain much weight. A sign of the disease is frequent breathing, the appearance on the lips of a foamy liquid. The child has pallor, lethargy, drowsiness, or, on the contrary, excessive excitement. In this case, the body temperature is often within the limits of the norm. If, upon detection of the above symptoms, do not begin immediate treatment, then within 2-3 days the condition of the child can deteriorate sharply.