Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsPneumoniaThe FluCOVID and Other CoronavirusesCommon ColdTypesLung Infection SymptomsWhen to See a Healthcare ProviderHow Lung Infections are DiagnosedRisk FactorsTreatmentPreventionComplications
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
Pneumonia
The Flu
COVID and Other Coronaviruses
Common Cold
Types
Lung Infection Symptoms
When to See a Healthcare Provider
How Lung Infections are Diagnosed
Risk Factors
Treatment
Prevention
Complications
A lung infection happens when a virus, bacteria, or fungus gets into the lungs.Immune cellsrace to the airways to fight the infection, causing inflammation. Chest congestion, difficulty breathing, coughing, wheezing, and fever are the result.
Most lung infections are treatable with antibiotics or antivirals, and mild infections often resolve on their own. In some cases, though, lung infections can be severe and lead to hospitalization and even death.
This article explains the types of lung infections. It discusses the different symptoms, causes, and treatments for lung infections and when to see a doctor.
Verywell / Shideh Ghandeharizadeh
Does Lung Inflammation Mean Infection?
Pneumoniais a lung infection that affects the smallest of airways (alveoli) where the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide takes place.
Pneumonia can be a mild illness that’s easily treated at home, but can also be a life-threatening infection that requires intensive care.
Pneumonia symptomscan include acough with rust-colored or bloody phlegm, high fever, chest pain, and fast heart and respiratory rates.
What Causes Pneumonia Lung Infections?
Seasonalinfluenza—or “the flu”—is one of the most common lung infections. Both influenza A and influenza B viruses are spread through droplets that come out of the body when a person coughs, sneezes, or even talks. That’s why the flu is very contagious.
The flu can cause a sore throat, runny nose, fever, chills, body aches, cough, and fatigue.
What Are the Different Types of Flu?
TheCOVID-19pandemic made people more aware of coronaviruses, but the one that causes COVID (SARS-CoV-2) is just one of several coronaviruses that infect humans.
Thecommon coldis responsible for 60% to 80% of school absences in children and 30% to 50% of time lost from work for adults.
During the first six years of life, children have, on average, six to eight colds per year. For most healthy adults, it drops down to three to four colds per year.
Other Types of Lung Infections
Lung infections are grouped into different types depending on how they affect the lungs and airways.
Some organisms are more likely to cause a certain type of lung infection, but there can also be some overlap between them. For example, some viruses can cause bronchitis and pneumonia.
Bronchitis
Bronchitisis an infection of the large airways (bronchi) that travel between the windpipe (trachea) and the smaller airways.
What Type of Lung Infection Is Bronchitis?
Bronchiolitis
Bronchiolitisis an infection of the smaller airways (bronchioles) between the larger bronchi and the tinyalveoliwhere the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide takes place.
Bronchiolitis is common in children under two years old and is the leading cause of hospitalizations of infants during the first year of life. That said, most children do not need to be hospitalized if they get sick with it.
After recovery, children who have had bronchiolitis may have an increased risk of developing recurrent wheezing orasthma during childhoodand even into adulthood.
Bronchiolitis Lung Infection in Children
Enterovirus
Non-polioenterovirusesare a group of common viruses that can cause lung infections. They also causehand, foot, and mouth disease(enterovirus A71), and severe infections in other parts of the body likemyocarditis(inflammation of the heart),meningitis(inflammation of the protective layer around the brain), andencephalitis(brain infection or inflammation).
Do Enteroviruses Cause Lung Infections?
Croup
Croupaffects the structures above the lungs (larynxand trachea) but can also involve the bronchi. It is more common in children.
Lung Infections in Kids: What Is Croup?
Whooping Cough (Pertussis)
Whooping cough(pertussis) is often thought of as a vaccine-preventable lung infection of the past, but people still get it today.
Whooping cough can cause mild to severe illness, but it’s mostly of concern for infants and young children—around 50% of babies under 12 months of age who get whooping cough need to be in the hospital.
About a fourth of babies and young children who get whooping cough will develop pneumonia. Less commonly (0.3%), complications of whooping cough such asencephalitismay occur.
Could a Lung Infection Be Whooping Cough?You should know the signs and symptoms of whooping cough, even if you and your family have beenvaccinated against it. While it can be a serious lung infection, early diagnosis and treatment can help make the cough less severe.
Could a Lung Infection Be Whooping Cough?
You should know the signs and symptoms of whooping cough, even if you and your family have beenvaccinated against it. While it can be a serious lung infection, early diagnosis and treatment can help make the cough less severe.
Tuberculosis
There are around 8,900active TB infectionsin the United States each year, but the number of cases is the lowest it’s been since we started keeping track in 1953.
What Kind of Lung Infection Is TB?
A lung infection, regardless of type or cause, tends to cause certain symptoms. Here are some of the most common symptoms of a lung infection:
Other possible symptoms of a lung infection include:
What Does Wheezing Sound Like?
Less Common Symptoms
There are also some less common, but still important to know, symptoms of a lung infection:
Is a Chest Infection a Lung Infection?
When Is Coughing up Blood an Emergency?
These fluids can help identify the cause of the infection—for example, bacteria and viruses.
Other tests will depend on the cause of the infection, how severe your symptoms are, and whether you have any other health conditions or concerns.
Risk Factors for Lung Infections
Risk factors for lung infections vary based on the type, but there are certain things that can increase your risk of lung problems in general.
Common Risk Factors
Some of the most common risk factors for lung infections include:
Risk Factors in Children
Risk factors for lung infections in kids include:
When to Worry About Your Child’s Cough
Less Common Risk Factors
While these risk factors for lung infections are less common, they’re still important to keep in mind:
Lung Infection Treatment
The treatment for a lung infection depends on what is causing it and how sick a person is, as well as whether they have any other health conditions.
Home Remedies
Home remedies for lung infections include:
At-Home Remedies for a Dry Cough
Prescription Medications and Hospital Treatment
Bacterial lung infections can be treated with antibiotics, but viral lung infections need to “run their course.” However, people with lung infections from any cause may need medical treatment if they have severe symptoms.
For example, people who develop narrowing of the airways with a lung infection (reactive airway disease) may need inhalers that open the airways andcorticosteroidsto help with inflammation.
People who develop low oxygen levels (hypoxia) from a lung infection might needoxygen therapy, and severe cases may need assisted breathing ormechanical ventilationto help with breathing.
Viral Lung Infections
Here are a few examples of how different viral lung infections might be treated:
Which COVID Treatments Work for Omicron?
Bacterial Lung Infections
Antibioticsare the mainstay of treatment for bacterial lung infections. The antibiotic that will be used will depend on which bacteria is causing the infection.
In some cases, a provider may choose to start antibiotics while they are waiting for tests to come back. Once they know which bacteria is the cause of the infection, they might change the antibiotic.
The timing is also important. For example, with pneumonia, antibiotics need to be started as soon as possible.
Fungal and Parasitic Lung Infections
Anti-fungal medications such as Diflucan (fluconazole), Nizoral (ketoconazole), or Noxafil (posaconazole) are used to treat fungal lung infections.
Parasitic lung infections are treated with anti-parasitic medications. The medication chosen will depend on the parasite that’s causing the infection.
What Causes Fungal Lung Infections?
Lung infections cannot always be prevented, but there are things you can do to lower your risk.
Vaccines
People who are at high risk for complications from lung infections should stay up-to-date on their immunizations. Vaccines that help to prevent lung infections include:
Good Hygiene
Prevent catching cold, flu, and other viruses. practice good hygiene. Try the following tips from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:
Don’t Smoke
Smokers have a higher risk of lung infections. Cigarette smoke causes chronic lung inflammation that narrows the air passages, making it more difficult to breathe and clear your lungs.
Over time smoking destroys lung tissue and makes you more susceptible to lung infections and chronic bronchitis.
You should also avoid indoor and outdoor air pollutants that can harm your lungs.
Build Immunity
Keeping your immune system strong can help to prevent lung infections. The CDC recommends the following tips for boosting your immunity:
Lung Infection Complications
Acute
Some of the acute complications of lung infections are breathing problems. For example, viral lung infections can trigger an asthma attack in patients who have asthma.
Lung infections can also causeexacerbationsin people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), which can in turn worsen that condition.
Chronic
Some effects of a lung infection don’t go away when a person gets better. For example, babies and kids who get bronchiolitis are at an increased risk of having wheezing and asthma later in childhood.
There is also concern that viral lung infections could play a role in a person’s risk of getting COPD.
COPD Risk Factors
Summary
Lung infections can affect different parts of the respiratory tract. They can cause mild to severe symptoms and illness. Some people, like babies, children, older adults, and people with chronic medical conditions, are at a higher risk of getting very sick and having complications from lung infections.
Some complications of lung infections, like breathing problems, can start as soon as a person gets sick and might require medical care. Others, like asthma and COPD, might not come on until later or might last even after a person recovers from a lung infection.
The treatment for lung infections depends on what is causing it and how sick a person is. If you have symptoms of a lung infection, tell your provider. You might be able to treat a lung infection at home with rest, fluids, OTC products, and home remedies. If you need medical treatment like antibiotics, your provider can prescribe them for you.
Why Do I Keep Getting Respiratory Infections?
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