What does Streptococcus pneumoniae cause?
Streptococcus pneumoniae is the most common cause of middle ear infections, sepsis (blood infection) in children and pneumonia in immunocompromised individuals and the elderly. It can also cause meningitis (inflammation of the coverings of the brain and spinal cord) or sinus infections.
What is Streptococcus pneumoniae known for?
Streptococcus pneumoniae bacteria cause pneumococcal disease, but are also commonly found in the respiratory track of healthy people, especially children. There are 100 known serotypes of Streptococcus pneumoniae, the bacteria that cause pneumococcal disease.
How do you catch Streptococcus pneumoniae?
Streptococcus pneumoniae is spread from person to person by the inhalation of respiratory droplets (e.g. coughing, sneezing) from an infected person. It is not known why certain individuals develop invasive Streptococcus pneumoniae disease while others do not.
What is the common name for Streptococcus pneumoniae?
Pneumococcal [noo-muh-KOK-uhl] disease is a name for any infection caused by bacteria called Streptococcus pneumoniae, or pneumococcus. Pneumococcal infections can range from ear and sinus infections to pneumonia and bloodstream infections.
Can Streptococcus pneumoniae be cured?
Doctors use antibiotics to treat pneumococcal disease. However, some pneumococcal bacteria have become resistant to certain antibiotics used to treat these infections. Available data show that pneumococcal bacteria are resistant to one or more antibiotics in 3 out of every 10 cases.
Where is Streptococcus pneumoniae found in the body?
Streptococcus pneumoniae are bacteria that are commonly found in the nose and throat of children and adults.
What is strep in the lungs?
Bacterial pneumonia is an infection of your lungs caused by certain bacteria. The most common one is Streptococcus (pneumococcus), but other bacteria can cause it too. If you’re young and basically healthy, these bacteria can live in your throat without causing any trouble.
What antibiotic kills Streptococcus pneumoniae?
Streptococcus pneumoniae is one of the most common organisms causing upper respiratory, lower respiratory, and invasive infections in children and adults. Management of pneumococcal infections used to be relatively straightforward, and penicillin generally was the antibiotic of choice.
Can Streptococcus affect lungs?
Acute pulmonary infection by Streptococcus pneumoniae is characterized by high bacterial numbers in the lung, a robust alveolar influx of polymorphonuclear cells (PMNs) and a risk of systemic spread of the bacterium.