Question about Pneumonia

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Specializes in M/S Short Stay/TCU.

Does anyone know what is atypical pneumonia & how the patient will present with symptoms? I wasn't sure if atypical pneumonia is the same as bacterial pneumonia?

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Specializes in School Nursing.

Weeelll, I can answer as a patient :) I had atypical pneumonia and my only s/s was that I would start spiking a fever late in the afternoon. I'd go home from work and go to bed and by morning the fever was gone, so I went to work (this was before NS when I had an office job). After about a week of this I started feeling REALLY bad at work and left early. When I got home my temp was 104.9 :eek: Of course it was Friday, so then I did not get to my MD until Monday. I never had respiratory s/s, but he did a CXR on a hunch. He called me later that day (personally) and said "stay in bed, you have pneumonia!" Shortly after I developed a slight productive cough, but I never had the s/s you would think of with pneumonia.

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Specializes in Advanced Practice, surgery.

Take a look at these links

Atypical Pneumonia

BBC health

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Does anyone know if you are supposed to lay the patient on the affected side or the unaffected side? We have conflicting answers in our text books, and the teachers can't agree either!

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Specializes in CTICU.

I'd say good lung down - aids oxygenation to the affected lung, and increased perfusion of the good lung which is down would maximize the oxygenation.

This article is somewhat old, but has good explanation: How Position Affects Oxygenation Good Lung down?, by Evelyn M. J. Yeaw. American Journal of Nursing.

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Specializes in med/surg, telemetry, IV therapy, mgmt.

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Thanks! Your explanation makes sense to me!

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