Pneumococcal can cause death

one of the diseases involving  lungs infection  is pneumonia.

Pneumococcal infection refers to an infection caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae.



USUALLY lung function for a person to decline gradually from the age of 20 years.

If there is no disruption of the lung such as chemicals from the environment or a healthy lifestyle, health organs can be maintained until old age without any problems.

Unhealthy lifestyle such as smoking or exposure to a foreign substance from the environment causing various infections of the lung resulting in serious damage.

Infection of human respiratory system can involve the respiratory tract, bronchitis infection and infection of the air sacs and pneumonia.

According to the Director of Respiratory Medicine Institution Kuala Lumpur, Datuk Dr. Abdul Razak Muttalif, one disease involving pneumonia is pneumonia that is a chronic disease caused by the bacterium streptococcus pneumoniae.

"Of the 90 percent of pneumococcal disease is only 10 percent of it can cause serious illness.

"The bacteria cause infection in other body parts of the body such as the lining of the brain and spinal cord (meningitis), blood infections (Bacteraemia), infection of the lungs (pneumonia) and ear infections (otitis media).

"Streptococcus pneumoniae can cause deadly disease that leads to death. Estimated 1.6 million deaths occur every year due to these bacteria," he said during an event to introduce the vaccine PREVENAR 13 for adults in Kuala Lumpur recently.

Based on the report of the World Health Organization (WHO), pneumococcal disease has been detected to be the killer of the adult when in 2002 of 896,000 deaths worldwide.


 Risk groups

In addition to adults, the disease is also attacking the children, aged five years and below.

"The children, aged two years and below are some of those who are susceptible to the disease, especially those who do not receive exclusive breastfeeding during the infant, too exposed to cigarette smoke and do not get immunized disease.

"For the adults, those aged 55 to 65 are at the risk of contracting pneumococcal disease," he said.

Dr. Abdul Razak said the pneumonia can cause serious diseases such as meningitis, ear infections, pneumonia and blood.

He said, headache, vomiting, sudden fever, swollen eardrum, shortness of breath or rapid, faint and so is a sign of infection.

More dangerous, the disease is capable of infecting others through bacteria spread by patients.

"These bacteria can be spread when a patient or person in this bacterium cough or sneeze.

"A person can also get this infection when touched something with pneumococcal bacteria that can pass through the human body cavities such as the mouth and nose," he added.

Said Dr. Abdul Razak, who has been infected with this disease are also at risk of getting infected again.

The best step to prevent the disease is to get the vaccine and immunization which not only can reduce the disease but also reduce the mortality rate.

reference Utusan article