The management of bacterial pneumonia is addressed in light of the severity of the condition at hand. One of the most important things that you should be on the look out for is to establish whether there is a need for hospitalization. You need to use the pneumonia severity index abbreviated PSI as a guide for the provision of inpatient care. Interestingly, this index has been shown to undervalue the patient’s need to be admitted, yet overshoot the mortality of patients who are at a high risk. As a general guide, admission to the intensive care unit is recommended for anyone who is suffering from septic shock. Consequently, it is important that is admission is accompanied by the use of vasopressers. If the patient has respiratory failure, mechanical ventilation should be provided.
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What is the role of respiratory support in the management of bacterial pneumonia?
The main form of treatment for this disease is the use of antibiotic therapy. For patients who have spasms in the bronchial system, the use of inhaled bronchodilators will come in very handy. This is achieved by use of a nebulizer where the dosages are measured by use of a meter. Patients who experience shortness of breath on the other hand could do well with supplemental oxygen. For this, the use of a cannula may be needed to aid ventilation.
Fluid resuscitation in patients with bacterial pneumonia
For patients suffering from hypo-tension, the use of an IV crystalloid bolus has been proven to be helpful. When you consider that many individuals suffering from pneumonia also have low fluid volumes, this becomes an important aspect of managing the condition. It is important to note that this should not be done for individuals, especially the elderly, who suffer from cardiac conditions. The reason for this is that administering fluid is likely to increase the volumes of fluid in the body, thus overworking the heart. This often worsens the cardiac condition, and will only complicate the case of pneumonia.
The use of corticosteroids
The use of supplemental corticosteroids in bacterial pneumonia patients with low pressure has been the center of controversy for a while. In previous years, it was suggested that patients with low blood pressure and sepsis undergo screening for effectiveness of the adrenal functions. In recent times however, guidelines have been provided to provide insight into the use of steroids thus preventing delayed adrenal insufficiency.
Antimicrobial therapy for the management of bacterial pneumonia
The idea behind the use of antimicrobial therapy for this disease is to eliminate any infections present as well as to decrease mortality. This has the sum effect of preventing complications so that the condition is easy to manage. This treatment is accompanied by the use of antibiotics channeled towards any prospective pathogens. This is often established by the setup as at the time of infection as well as the likelihood that the patient will be exposed to organisms which have built up resistance against multiple drugs.
These are just some of the ways in which one can manage bacterial pneumonia to alleviate the patient’s suffering.