According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the prevalence of streptococcus pneumonia is 13 per 100,000 people in the United States. Those who are at increased risk include the elderly, immunocompromised individuals and the very young. Streptococcus pneumoniae are found in the nasophyarnx of most people and don't usually cause disease. However, when exposure to airborne respiratory droplets occurs, people can develop pneumonia. Patients with Streptococcus pneumonia usually display the symptoms of a bad upper respiratory infection.
Cough
According to MayoClinic.com, pneumonia symptoms often mimic the flu and patients start out with a cough and feeling generally miserable. Pneumonia causes the small air sacs of the lungs, alveoli, to fill with infected fluid. Pneumonia also irritates and inflames the airways, the bronchi, leading to the lungs. Each breath that a pneumonia patient takes can irritate the airways and cause the patient to cough. This cough is usually productive and produces dark green to brownish colored, thick phlegm. Inflammation can reach the outside of the lungs and inflame the lining around the lungs causing pleuritic chest pain. Pleuritic pain occurs because the lungs are rubbing against an inflamed lining.
Fever
Fever is the body's way of helping the immune system fight against the bacteria of pneumonia. Streptococcus pneumonia usually will cause a fever in patients. According to an article published in Scientific American in July 2005, having a fever makes the environment for bacteria less hospitable. Many types of bacteria create pyrogens or proteins that cause fever which the body's thermostat reacts to. Located in the base of the brain, the hypothalamus maintains body temperature and reacts as needed to stimuli. Prolonged severe fever, greater than 105 degrees Fahrenheit can cause febrile seizures, cellular stress and delirium, says the Scientific American article. Patients with strep pneumonia and fever should take acetaminophen to keep the temperature down.
Disorientation
When the lungs fill with fluid, oxygen exchange becomes impaired. This means that not enough oxygen gets into the blood through the lungs and not enough carbon dioxide is taken from the blood through the lungs and expires. Brain cells prove extremely sensitive to a lack of oxygen in the system, says the National Institutes of Health. This can cause disorientation in a patient with Streptococcus pneumonia. Some patients with chronic lung disease and pneumonia may need oxygen therapy.
