typical versus atypical pneumonia

[Sailor V]

can anyone tell me how to differentiate between the symptoms of typical versus atypical pneumonia?

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[SomeDoc]

Main characteristic is nonproductive cough. Bugs which cause atypical pneumonia typically gram stain poorly.

 

[45408]

Atypical pneumonia is often found in close quarters - military barracks, dorms, etc - and on chest x-ray appears to be much worse than the patient actually appears. Frequent suspect: mycoplasma pneumoniae.

 

[mjl1717]

can anyone tell me how to differentiate between the symptoms of typical versus atypical pneumonia?

Oh, this takes guts!
My 2 cents concerning "Atypical Pneumonia"..

1)As Prowler suggest atypical is more insidious plus CXR findings are greater then the clinical findings

2)Kaplan mentions Mycoplasma, Chlamydiae Pneumonia and Legionella... My pneumonic is "most common lung" but I think the zoonotic atypical are more common eg.. Chlamydiae Psitticae, Q fever and Tularemia..
So much for Kaplan*#@..

3)I think they use the word patchy and lobar consolidation for the CXR in atypical pneumonia...

4)Walking pneumonia IS a nickname of Mycoplasma pneumonia..

5)Sometimes you hear dry cough but I think its more of a very minimal productive cough..

 

[ZagDoc]

Acute bacterial pneumonia normally presents with more toxicity. Significant fever, tachypnea and tachycardia. PE exam typically demonstrates purulent sputum. Course of disease is much quicker, typically under 5 days of illness before the patient presents. Dense lobar infiltrate on CT often with evidence of consolidation. Top 3 etiologic causes in the population are pneumococcus, h flu, and moraxella.

Atypical is much more insidious, often characterized as a walking pneumonia. Often afebrile, HR/RR normal, negative PE. Systemic symptoms are often stressed by the patient with a flu-like prodrome. Progression of disease is often 2+ weeks instead of days. Minimally to non-productive cough often with chest pain (from cough, not pleuritic) with negative sputum stain. CXR often negative or demonstrating typically unilateral interstitial infiltrate. Mycoplasma is the big one, chlamydia pneumoniae #2. Legionella is characterized as atypical but often has a more toxic presentation with systemic (particularly GI) involvement and more dense infiltrate on CXR, mostly seen in older male smokers. Mycoplasma and chlamydia are typically indistinguishable clinically and the diagnosis is made on clinical features alone.

 

[Sailor V]

Thanx everyone!! Great help!

 

[Hayden2102]

Nosocomial pneumonia will almost invariably present as typical pneumonia, if that helps...