Atypical pneumonia

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Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1] Template:Pagename is a term used to describe a disease caused by one or a combination of the following organisms:

Causes

Legionella pneumophila: Causes a severe form of pneumonia with a relatively high mortality rate, known as legionellosis or Legionnaires’ disease..
Mycoplasma pneumoniae: Usually occurs in younger age groups and may be associated with neurological and systemic (e.g. rashes) symptoms.
Chlamydophila pneumoniae: Mild form of pneumonia with relatively mild symptoms.
The severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) was also considered a kind of atypical pneumonia and is still called so in the Chinese mainland.

Symptoms include pyrexia, shortness of breath, laboured breathing, cough, arthralgia (joint pain), malaise, loss of appetite, confusion, rash, and diarrhea.

Consider causes of prolonged acute bronchitis:

Treatment is with oral antibiotics, mainly with those which interfere with protein synthesis e.g. erythromycin, and diagnosis is confirmed by blood cultures and sputum samples.