Respiratory mycoplasmosis
Respiratory (pulmonary) mycoplasmosis refers to infectious diseases of the upper respiratory tract. The cause of the onset of symptoms of the disease is mycoplasma pneumonia. The pathogen parasitizes human cells, gradually destroying them, at the same time, the microorganism becomes the cause of the appearance of an autoimmune reaction. In other words, mycoplasma directs the body's defenses to fight its own cells.
Causes of respiratory mycoplasmosis
Mycoplasma is considered to be the cause of respiratory mycoplasmosis. The source of the spread of infection is a sick person. A patient suffering from mycoplasmosis secretes microorganisms within 10 days from the onset of the disease; in the chronic course of the pathological process, the carrier of the infection can pose a danger to others for 13 weeks.
Mycoplasmas enter the human body by airborne droplets; children's groups are characterized by contact and household transmission of infection.
Susceptibility to the causative agent of the disease depends on the genetic characteristics of a person, and the immunity acquired after a previous illness can persist from five to ten years. The incubation period for mycoplasmosis lasts from one to two weeks.
Pulmonary mycoplasmosis symptoms
The first symptoms of respiratory mycoplasmosis include an increase in body temperature to 38 ° C Celsius for a short time, cough, discomfort in the throat (perspiration), runny nose, and profuse sweating. Redness is noted on the mucous membrane of the mouth and pharynx. With the further development of the disease, the inflammatory process descends into the bronchi and becomes the cause of a dry, painful cough with scanty sputum secretion. In advanced cases, atypical pneumonia develops against the background of respiratory mycoplasmosis. In terms of its symptoms, pulmonary mycoplasmosis has much in common with the symptoms of influenza, but, unlike influenza, mycoplasmosis is characterized by a gradual development of symptoms and a long course of the disease.
Respiratory mycoplasmosis is accompanied by a regression of symptoms that lasts for one to three months. In young patients, chronic mycoplasmosis can cause irreversible expansion of the bronchi or scarring of the lungs due to overgrowth of connective tissue.
Treatment of respiratory mycoplasmosis
For the treatment of respiratory mycoplasmosis, antibiotics from the macrolide group are most often used, the most popular drug is Macropen. It is recommended for adults and children aged eight and over. The drug is generally well tolerated. "Macropen" is contraindicated in severe liver damage and in patients with renal failure.
In addition, for the treatment of respiratory mycoplasmosis, a doctor can prescribe antimicrobial agents of the tetracycline series, which are most effective in the presence of several pathogens of the infectious process.
Article author: Mochalov Pavel Alexandrovich | d. m. n. therapist
Education: Moscow Medical Institute. IM Sechenov, specialty - "General Medicine" in 1991, in 1993 "Occupational Diseases", in 1996 "Therapy".
