Pneumonia with lung abscess

Alternative names:

anaerobic pneumonia; aspiration of vomitus; aspiration pneumonia; necrotizing pneumonia; pyogenic pneumonia

Symptoms:

• fever
  • present for 2 weeks or longer

• weight loss
• fatigue
• cough
  • with foul-smelling sputum
  • with sputum containing pus or blood
  • with greenish sputum

• shortness of breath
• bluish discoloration of the skin caused by lack of oxygen
• rapid pulse (heart rate)
• wheezing
• rales
• abnormal (high pitched) breathing sounds (may occur)

Additional symptoms that may be associated with this disease:

• sweating, excessive
• swallowing difficulty
• nail abnormalities
• joint swelling
• joint stiffness
• coughing up blood
• chills
• chest pain
• breath odor
• bone pain or tenderness

Signs and tests:

Physical examination reveals crackling sounds with stethoscope.

These tests also help diagnose this condition:

• a CBC
• arterial blood gas
• blood culture
• bronchoscopy
• chest X-ray
• lung needle biopsy with culture
• open lung biopsy
• sputum culture