Pneumonia is a disease of the lungs that causes inflammation in the alveoli ( air sacs present in the lungs responsible for the exchange of Carbon dioxide and Oxygen). The air sacs get filled with fluid or pus and result in inflammation.
This can be a deadly disease for infants, children, and people aged over 65. On the other hand, Walking Pneumonia is the other non-medical term for pneumonia but on a lower level.
Walking Pneumonia is called atypical pneumonia in the medical language.
Key Takeaways
- Pneumonia is a severe lung infection with potentially life-threatening symptoms while walking pneumonia is a milder form that allows the individual to function relatively normally.
- Walking pneumonia has a faster recovery time and may not require hospitalization, while pneumonia requires more intensive treatment and monitoring.
- Mycoplasma pneumoniae bacteria commonly cause walking pneumonia, whereas various pathogens, including bacteria, viruses, and fungi, can cause pneumonia.
Pneumonia vs Walking Pneumonia
Pneumonia is a lung disease that causes inflammation in the lungs due to the pus-filled air sacs caused by bacteria, viruses or fungi. It is a severe lung disease that causes fever, breathlessness and chest pain. Walking pneumonia is a less severe case of pneumonia that can be easily treated with basic healthcare. It may cause mild symptoms of fever or cough.
Pneumonia, being on the severe side, can even lead to death if the sensitivity increases. A person with pneumonia may experience high fever, cough with mucus, shortness of breath, and chest pain.
The severity of this disease can take you to the route of getting hospitalized. Treatment may take longer to rehabilitate one.
Walking pneumonia is the milder stage of pneumonia. People diagnosed with Walking Pneumonia may even don’t determine it to be pneumonia as it shows slight and different symptoms such as cold, dry cough, and a little fever, one may misunderstand this with a viral infection.
Comparison Table
| Parameter of comparison | Pneumonia | Walking Pneumonia |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Pneumonia is the disease of the lungs that causes inflammation in the alveoli. | Walking Pneumonia is the other non-medical term for pneumonia but on a lower stage. |
| Risk factors | Higher risk factors | Lower risk factors |
| Types | There are 3 types of Pneumonia, Bacterial Pneumonia, viral Pneumonia, and fungal Pneumonia. | Walking Pneumonia is majorly of one Bacterial type. Caused by Bacterial infections |
| Treatment | Treatments like breathing treatments, corticosteroids, intravenous fluids, and oral antibiotics may be needed. Severe patients need to be hospitalized | Treatment can be done at home with the doctor’s guidance. An adequate amount of water should be taken and proper medical care as soon as one is diagnosed with Walking Pneumonia. |
What is Pneumonia?
Pneumonia is a common disease among children. Let’s have a look at what the statistics show about pneumonia.
In 2017, around 2.56 million people died of pneumonia, and most of them were children aged below 5 years.
Pneumonia is the major cause of death in children, especially those below the age of 5. Viral Pneumonia tops the list when it comes to the largest number of hospitalizations of infants in the world, especially in the United States.
Several factors are responsible for pneumonia and cause different types of pneumonia.
Bacterial Pneumonia
Streptococcus pneumoniae is considered to be the main cause of bacterial Pneumonia. Mycoplasma pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae, and Legionella pneumophila stand for the other causes.
Bacterial Pneumonia appears to attract life-threatening risks for the diagnosed individual.
Viral Pneumonia
Viral Pneumonia is the second most common Pneumonia that people suffer from. One may be diagnosed with a viral infection from coming in contact with influenza A, B, and C viruses and various other viruses like parainfluenza virus, adenovirus, respiratory syncytial virus and varicella virus.
This type of pneumonia is not deadly, but people frequently get diagnosed with viral Pneumonia than the other types.
Fungal Pneumonia
Fungal Pneumonia is caused by fungal spores (associated with lung diseases). Pneumocystis jirovecii, Cryptococcus species, and Histoplasmosis species are some of the fungi that are responsible for fungal Pneumonia.
People may attract these fungi from bird droppings or soil. Fungal Pneumonia has as high as 90% mortality rate in people with weak immune systems.
People diagnosed with this disease, if it remains untreated, are at a higher risk of death.
As we know, the three main types of Pneumonia,
- Hospital-Acquired Pneumonia
- Community-Acquired Pneumonia
- Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia
- and Aspiration Pneumonia (when bacteria enter our lungs through food or saliva)
are the other names that Pneumonia is classified into.
Is Pneumonia Contagious?
Yes, Pneumonia is contagious, it may transfer from person to person or by the surface and environment.
What is Walking Pneumonia?
Walking Pneumonia, as mentioned earlier, is the non-medical name of mild Pneumonia. Bacterial infection is the main cause of Walking Pneumonia, including Bacteria like Mycoplasma pneumoniae, Chlamydophila Pneumoniae, and Legionella Pneumoniae ( being the cause for the most severe type of Pneumonia).
Symptoms include
- Sore throat
- Mild fever
- Headache
- Chest pain
- Loss of appetite
- Labored breathing
- Dry cough
Walking Pneumonia is easier to treat, but it is not easier to recognise as the symptoms replicate viral infections such as a cold and a cough; hence, in some cases, symptoms come into consideration when getting severe.
Walking Pneumonia needs longer to get cured than Pneumonia, however, it can be treated with normal treatments, including antibiotics.
Main Differences Between Pneumonia and Walking Pneumonia
- Pneumonia and Walking Pneumonia are both lung diseases but differ on the severity level. Walking Pneumonia is a mind version of Pneumonia.
- There are three main causes of Pneumonia, but in Walking Pneumonia, bacterial infection is the main reason.
- Pneumonia has a higher risk factor, while on the other hand Walking Pneumonia is mild and involves lower risk factors.
- Treatment of Pneumonia doesn’t take long while walking. Pneumonia takes as long as six weeks of treatment to cure.
- Symptoms of Pneumonia may get severe as the shortening of breath and high fever, while symptoms of walking Pneumonia are mild and as of viral infection.
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5357734/
- https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1517/14656566.7.5.499
Last Updated : 05 September, 2023
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Piyush Yadav has spent the past 25 years working as a physicist in the local community. He is a physicist passionate about making science more accessible to our readers. He holds a BSc in Natural Sciences and Post Graduate Diploma in Environmental Science. You can read more about him on his bio page.
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