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    Aspiration Pneumonia, A Simple Guide To The Condition, Diagnosis, Treatment And Related Conditions
    Aspiration Pneumonia, A Simple Guide To The Condition, Diagnosis, Treatment And Related Conditions
    Aspiration Pneumonia, A Simple Guide To The Condition, Diagnosis, Treatment And Related Conditions
    Ebook114 pages1 hour

    Aspiration Pneumonia, A Simple Guide To The Condition, Diagnosis, Treatment And Related Conditions

    By Kenneth Kee

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    About this ebook

    This book describes Aspiration Pneumonia, Diagnosis and Treatment and Related Diseases

    Recently my father who was ninety nine years old died of aspiration pneumonia while in hospital because of problem swallowing (dysphagia).
    There was no fever.
    He also had advanced bladder cancer.

    Pneumonia is a breathing disorder in which there is swelling or an infection of the lungs or infected large airways.
    It is the second commonest cause of death in Singapore.
    Aspiration pneumonia is a lung infection induced by inhaled oral or gastric contents.
    It can become severe if left untreated.
    Aspiration pneumonia happens when food, saliva, liquids, or vomit is inhaled into the lungs or airways extending to the lungs, instead of being swallowed into the esophagus and stomach.
    Aspiration pneumonia is a dangerous sequel to pulmonary aspiration.
    Pulmonary aspiration happens when the patient inhale particles, stomach acid or saliva into the lungs.
    The patient can also aspirate food that refluxes back up from the stomach to the esophagus.
    All of these things may contain bacteria that involve the lungs.
    Healthy lungs can recover by themselves.
    If they do not, pneumonia can occur as a complication.

    Causes
    The type of bacteria that caused the pneumonia is dependent on:
    1. The health
    2. The location of the patient (at home or in a long-term nursing facility or hospital)
    3. If the patient was recently hospitalized
    4. The recent antibiotic use
    5. Whether the immune system is weakened
    Pneumonia from aspiration can happen when the defenses are impaired and the aspirated contents have a large quantity of harmful bacteria.
    The patient can aspirate and develop pneumonia if the food or drink enters the airway instead of stomach.
    This may happen even if the patient can swallow normally and have a normal gag reflex.
    In that case, most of the time the patient will be able to stop this by coughing.
    Those who have impaired coughing ability may not be able to do so easily.
    This impairment may be because of:
    1. Neurological disorders
    2. Throat cancer
    3. Medical disorders like myasthenia gravis or Parkinson’s disease
    4. Excessive use of alcohol or prescription or illegal drugs
    5. Use of sedatives or anesthesia
    6. A weakened immune system
    7. Esophageal disorders
    8. Dental disorders that disrupt chewing or swallowing

    Risk factors for breathing in (aspiration) of foreign substance into the lungs are:
    1. Being less alert due to medicines, illness, or other reasons
    2. Coma
    3. Drinking large quantities of alcohol
    4. Receiving medicine to put the patient into a deep sleep for surgery (general anesthesia)
    5. Old age
    6. Poor gag reflex in people who are not alert (unconscious or semi-conscious) after a stroke or brain injury
    7. Problems with swallowing

    Diagnosis
    The doctor will check for signs of pneumonia during a physical exam, such as:
    1. A decreased flow of air,
    2. Rapid heart rate, and
    3. A crackling sound in the lungs.
    The doctor will listen with his stethoscope for crepitations (rales) or abnormal breath sounds when listening to the chest.
    If pneumonia is indicated, the doctor will likely order a chest x-ray.
    These tests may also help diagnose this disorder:
    1. Arterial blood gas
    2. Blood culture
    3. Bronchoscopy (uses a special endoscope to view the lung airways)
    4. Full blood count (FBC)
    5. CT scan of the chest
    6. Sputum culture
    7. Swallowing tests

    Treatment
    The treatment requires antibiotics and supportive care for breathing.
    Some people may require a stay in hospital.
    The treatment is dependent on how severe the pneumonia is and how ill the person is before the aspiration (chronic illness).
    People with trouble swallowing may have to stop taking food by mouth.

    TABLE OF CONTENT
    Introduction
    Chap

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherKenneth Kee
    Release dateJun 18, 2019
    ISBN9780463519493
    Aspiration Pneumonia, A Simple Guide To The Condition, Diagnosis, Treatment And Related Conditions
    Author

    Kenneth Kee

    Medical doctor since 1972.Started Kee Clinic in 1974 at 15 Holland Dr #03-102, relocated to 36 Holland Dr #01-10 in 2009.Did my M.Sc (Health Management ) in 1991 and Ph.D (Healthcare Administration) in 1993.Dr Kenneth Kee is still working as a family doctor at the age of 74However he has reduced his consultation hours to 3 hours in the morning and 2 hours inthe afternoon.He first started writing free blogs on medical disorders seen in the clinic in 2007 on http://kennethkee.blogspot.com.His purpose in writing these simple guides was for the health education of his patients which is also his dissertation for his Ph.D (Healthcare Administration). He then wrote an autobiography account of his journey as a medical student to family doctor on his other blog http://afamilydoctorstale.blogspot.comThis autobiography account “A Family Doctor’s Tale” was combined with his early “A Simple Guide to Medical Disorders” into a new Wordpress Blog “A Family Doctor’s Tale” on http://ken-med.com.From which many free articles from the blog was taken and put together into 1000 eBooks.He apologized for typos and spelling mistakes in his earlier books.He will endeavor to improve the writing in futures.Some people have complained that the simple guides are too simple.For their information they are made simple in order to educate the patients.The later books go into more details of medical disorders.He has published 1000 eBooks on various subjects on health, 1 autobiography of his medical journey, another on the autobiography of a Cancer survivor, 2 children stories and one how to study for his nephew and grand-daughter.The purpose of these simple guides is to educate patient on health disorders and not meant as textbooks.He does not do any night duty since 2000 ever since Dr Tan had his second stroke.His clinic is now relocated to the Buona Vista Community Centre.The 2 units of his original clinic are being demolished to make way for a new Shopping Mall.He is now doing some blogging and internet surfing (bulletin boards since the 1980's) startingwith the Apple computer and going to PC.The entire PC is upgraded by himself from XT to the present Pentium duo core.The present Intel i7 CPU is out of reach at the moment because the CPU is still expensive.He is also into DIY changing his own toilet cistern and other electric appliance.His hunger for knowledge has not abated and he is a lifelong learner.The children have all grown up and there are 2 grandchildren who are even more technically advanced than the grandfather where mobile phones are concerned.This book is taken from some of the many articles in his blog (now with 740 posts) A Family Doctor’s Tale.Dr Kee is the author of:"A Family Doctor's Tale""Life Lessons Learned From The Study And Practice Of Medicine""Case Notes From A Family Doctor"

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      Book preview

      Aspiration Pneumonia, A Simple Guide To The Condition, Diagnosis, Treatment And Related Conditions - Kenneth Kee

      Aspiration Pneumonia,

      A

      Simple

      Guide

      To

      The condition,

      Diagnosis,

      Treatment

      And

      Related Conditions

      By

      Dr Kenneth Kee

      M.B.,B.S. (Singapore)

      Ph.D (Healthcare Administration)

      Copyright Kenneth Kee 2019 Smashwords Edition

      Published by Kenneth Kee at Smashwords.com

      Dedication

      This book is dedicated

      To my wife Dorothy

      And my children

      Carolyn, Grace

      And Kelvin

      This book describes Aspiration Pneumonia, Diagnosis and Treatment and Related Diseases which is seen in some of my patients in my Family Clinic.

      (What You Need to Treat Aspiration Pneumonia)

      This e-Book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This eBook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each reader.

      If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy.

      Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

      Introduction

      I have been writing medical articles for my blog: http://kennethkee.blogspot.com (A Simple Guide to Medical Disorder) for the benefit of my patients since 2007.

      My purpose in writing these simple guides was for the health education of my patients.

      Health Education was also my dissertation for my Ph.D (Healthcare Administration).

      I then wrote an autobiolographical account of his journey as a medical student to family doctor on his other blog: http://afamilydoctorstale.blogspot.com.

      This autobiolographical account A Family Doctor’s Tale was combined with my early A Simple Guide to Medical Disorders into a new Wordpress Blog A Family Doctor’s Tale on http://kenkee481.wordpress.com.

      From which many free articles from the blog was taken and put together into 800 eBooks.

      Some people have complained that the simple guides are too simple.

      For their information they are made simple in order to educate the patients.

      The later books go into more details of medical disorders.

      The first chapter is always from my earlier blogs which unfortunately tends to have typos and spelling mistakes.

      Since 2013, I have tried to improve my spelling and writing.

      As I tried to bring the patient the latest information about a disorder or illness by reading the latest journals both online and offline, I find that I am learning more and improving on my own medical knowledge in diagnosis and treatment for my patients.

      Just by writing all these simple guides I find that I have learned a lot from your reviews (good or bad), criticism and advice.

      I am sorry for the repetitions in these simple guides as the second chapters onwards have new information as compared to my first chapter taken from my blog.

      I also find repetition definitely help me and maybe some readers to remember the facts in the books more easily.

      I apologize if these repetitions are irritating to some readers.

      Chapter 1

      Aspiration pneumonia

      What is aspiration pneumonia?

      Aspiration pneumonia is a result of pulmonary aspiration.

      Pulmonary aspiration happens when the patient inhales food, stomach acid, or saliva into the lungs.

      The patient can also aspirate food that moves back up from the stomach to the esophagus.

      All of these things may bring bacteria that affect the lungs.

      Healthy lungs can clear up on their own.

      If they do not, pneumonia can form as a complication.

      Pneumonia is a breathing disorder in which there is swelling or an infection of the lungs or large airways.

      Aspiration pneumonia happens when food, saliva, liquids, or vomit is inhaled into the lungs or airways leading to the lungs, instead of being swallowed into the esophagus and stomach.

      What causes aspiration pneumonia?

      Causes

      Pneumonia from aspiration can happen when the defenses are damaged and the aspirated contents have a large quantity of harmful bacteria.

      The patient can aspirate and develop pneumonia if the food or drink travels down the wrong way.

      This may happen even if the patient can swallow normally and have a regular gag reflex.

      In that case, most of the time the patient will be able to avoid this by coughing.

      Those who have damaged coughing ability may not be able to.

      This impairment may be caused by:

      1. Neurological disorders

      2. Throat cancer

      3. Medical disorders like myasthenia gravis or Parkinson’s disease

      4. Excessive use of alcohol or prescription or illegal drugs

      5. Use of sedatives or anesthesia

      6. A weakened immune system

      7. Esophageal disorders

      8. Dental disorders that interfere with chewing or swallowing

      The type of bacteria that caused the pneumonia is dependent on:

      1. The health of the patient

      2. Where the patient lives (at home or in a long-term nursing facility, for example)

      3. Whether the patient was recently hospitalized

      4. The recent antibiotic use

      5. Whether the immune system is weakened

      Who is at risk for aspiration pneumonia?

      Risk factors for aspiration pneumonia are people with:

      1. Impaired consciousness

      2. Lung disease

      3. Seizure

      4. Stroke

      4.

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