Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsDefinitionComplicationsRisk FactorsPreventionWhen to See a Provider
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
Definition
Complications
Risk Factors
Prevention
When to See a Provider
If you or someone you love has been diagnosed withpneumonia, you may be wondering if this lung infection can be fatal. Can you die from pneumonia? The sad answer is that you can.
Pneumonia is a very common infection. It can impact anyone andcan vary from mild to severe. For some people, it can be quite serious—even deadly. In the United States, pneumonia is responsible for about 1 million hospitalizations a year and 50,000 deaths.It kills more children under the age of 5 than any other infection.
This article will cover who is at high risk of serious complications from pneumonia and different types of pneumonia. It also discusses how pneumonia can become deadly and ways to avoid getting pneumonia.
Sukanya Sitthikongsak / Getty Images
What Is Pneumonia?
Pneumonia is an infection of the lungs that leads to fluid build-up in the lungs. If the air sacs in the lungs (called alveoli) fill up with fluids, it’s harder for them to do their job of transferring oxygen into the blood and getting rid of carbon dioxide that’s built up in the body.
Pneumonia may develop after you come down with a virus like a cold or flu, or it can happen without any previous illness. The keysymptoms of pneumoniainclude:
Types of Pneumonia
Atypical Pneumonia
There are a few other “atypical” types of pneumonia that you may have heard of. These infections are “atypical” not because they’re uncommon but because they have different signs and symptoms and react differently to the usual treatments for pneumonia:
How Does Pneumonia Lead to Death?
The most common complication of pneumonia is a condition calledpleural effusion. This is the buildup of fluid between the layers of tissue that line the lungs and chest cavity. It causes pain and impairs your ability to breathe.These and other complications of pneumonia can lead to lung and heart complications.
TreatmentIf you’re diagnosed with pneumonia, your healthcare provider will likely prescribe antibiotics or antivirals. If your pneumonia is severe, you may be hospitalized and receive these drugs intravenously (through a tube in your vein), and you may receive help breathing.
Treatment
If you’re diagnosed with pneumonia, your healthcare provider will likely prescribe antibiotics or antivirals. If your pneumonia is severe, you may be hospitalized and receive these drugs intravenously (through a tube in your vein), and you may receive help breathing.
Severe pneumonia can be deadly because of the severe complications that can result from a serious infection:
Severe pneumonia, especially if left untreated, can have long-lasting repercussions on your lungs. It can influence your susceptibility to infections in the future and decrease your ability to exercise and quality of life. Make sure to get treated promptly for pneumonia if you aren’t getting better.
4 Stages of PneumoniaThe4 stages of pneumoniadescribe how the infection progresses:Congestion:Fluid builds up in thealveoliand capillaries in the lungs.Red hepatization:Red blood cells and other immune cells rush to the lungs and alveoli to fight the infection.Grey hepatization:Red blood cells begin to break up, causing the lungs to become a greyish-brown or yellow color.Resolution:The infection has resolved and lung airways and alveoli are functioning normally.
4 Stages of Pneumonia
The4 stages of pneumoniadescribe how the infection progresses:Congestion:Fluid builds up in thealveoliand capillaries in the lungs.Red hepatization:Red blood cells and other immune cells rush to the lungs and alveoli to fight the infection.Grey hepatization:Red blood cells begin to break up, causing the lungs to become a greyish-brown or yellow color.Resolution:The infection has resolved and lung airways and alveoli are functioning normally.
The4 stages of pneumoniadescribe how the infection progresses:
Who Is at Risk?
Most healthy people canrecover from pneumoniarelatively quickly and without complications. However, there are certain high-risk groups and health conditions that increase the risk of death from pneumonia. These include:
Those with multiple risk factors increase their risk even higher.
Not everyone in these groups will end up with severe pneumonia and die. However, they are at an increased risk of being sicker, needing to be hospitalized, needing intravenous medications, and developing severe complications from the infection.
Aspiration Pneumonia
It’s possible to develop pneumonia when a foreign object enters the lungs.Aspiration pneumoniais caused when liquid, food, vomit, or saliva enters the lungs, eventually causing an infection. This can happen in people who have difficulty swallowing, but also when people are less alert due to medicines, illness, surgery, excessive alcohol, or illicit drug use.
Community-Acquired vs. Healthcare-Associated
There are two different ways to get pneumonia which may impact what kinds of germs make you sick. If you’ve picked up pneumonia during daily life, it’s called community-acquired pneumonia. If youcaught it while in a hospital setting, long-term care facility, or other extended-stay facility, it’s called healthcare-associated pneumonia.
The germs that cause these two different types of pneumonia are different. Those from a hospital setting are more likely to be antibiotic-resistant, which means they do not respond to treatment with certain antibiotics.This makes recovery more difficult.
Can Pneumonia Heal On Its Own?Viral pneumonia is often mild and goes away on its own within a few weeks. However viral pneumonia puts you at risk of getting bacterial pneumonia, which requires treatment with antibiotics and sometimes is serious enough to require treatment in a hospital.
Can Pneumonia Heal On Its Own?
Viral pneumonia is often mild and goes away on its own within a few weeks. However viral pneumonia puts you at risk of getting bacterial pneumonia, which requires treatment with antibiotics and sometimes is serious enough to require treatment in a hospital.
How Is Pneumonia Prevented?
One of the best ways to prevent pneumonia is to make sure to follow proper cold and flu season hygiene:
While most people will catch a cold or the flu every year, some infections that cause pneumonia can be prevented with vaccines. There are specifically a few vaccines you should get to avoid catching pneumonia:
When to See a Healthcare Provider
If you’re at high risk for pneumonia, or if you have a lingering cold, cough, or flu, make sure to monitor yourself for concerning symptoms. If you’re having any of these danger signs of pneumonia (especially if you’re at high risk), contact your healthcare provider:
Summary
Pneumonia can lead to death, especially for people who are in high-risk groups. Bacterial pneumonia is the type most likely to lead to hospitalization. However, viral and fungal pneumonia can also cause serious complications or death.
Several vaccines can lessen the risk of serious illness from pneumonia. Maintaining good health and taking precautions to prevent the spread of infections can reduce your risks.
16 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
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Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Pneumonia.
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American Lung Association.What causes pneumonia?
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Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.About pneumococcal disease.
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.Pneumonia.
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Sano M, Shindo Y, Takahashi K, et al.Risk factors for antibiotic resistance in hospital-acquired and ventilator-associated pneumonia.J Infect Chemother. 2022 Jun;28(6):745-752. doi:10.1016/j.jiac.2022.02.012
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Healthy habits to prevent flu.
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Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Pneumococcal vaccination.
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