A biopsy of the lungs is a diagnostic procedure during which a doctor removes a small portion of the lung tissue for further evaluation. Typically, this test is performed on patients with suspected lung disease or infection, such as lung cancer or...
Viral pathogens are responsible for approximately 50 percent of all pneumonia cases, according to health experts at Johns Hopkins Medicine. Viral pneumonia symptoms initially mimic common cold or flu symptoms, but progressively become more severe...
Symptoms of lung infections may begin with a simple persistent cough or difficulty in breathing, according to Merck. Lung infections need medical treatment with anti-infective drugs in order to restore normal breathing capabilities. Some lung...
Bacterial pneumonia is an infection caused by the presence of bacteria within the lungs. The most common cause of this type of infection is a bacterium called streptococcus pneumoniae, according to the Cleveland Clinic. Anyone who develops...
Bullous pemphigoid is a rare skin disease that most frequently affects patients over the age of 60, according to medical professionals with MayoClinic.com. As of 2010, the cause of bullous pemphigoid was not fully understood, though this disease...
The lungs are spongy, paired organs located deep within the chest and are responsible for respiration. Sometimes the airways can tighten or mucus can fill these airways. In some instances, a bacteria can infiltrate the lungs and lead to a very...
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also called Lou Gehrig's disease, affects the motor neurons, which control voluntary movement such as walking. MedlinePlus from the National Institutes of Health notes that amyotrophic lateral sclerosis affects one...
Pneumonia is an inflammatory lung infection that commonly affects the elderly. Though this infection can be life-threatening in older patients, pneumonia symptoms in the elderly can be vague, mild or difficult to identify. Elderly patients who...
Crackles in the lungs, most often described as a “popping” sound, originate in the airway. The crackling noise comes from a blocked airway that opens suddenly, which causes the sound to reverberate through the airway. Crackles are...
The lungs are two organs within the chest that take in oxygen from the air, pass it into the bloodstream and release carbon dioxide out of the body. Injury to the chest, marijuana use and hiking at high altitudes can cause a collapsed lung in...
A nursing diagnosis differs from a medical diagnosis. Nursing diagnoses describe problems that can be addressed by nursing measures. Because nurses can't diagnose a disease or prescribe medication, a nursing diagnosis doesn't describe a disease or...
Pneumonia is an infectious illness that primarily affects children, the elderly and people with other illnesses that lower the immune system or damage the lungs. Pneumonia is commonly caused by a bacteria or virus, though more rare cases can also...
HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) attacks the patient's immune system, leaving him susceptible to other viruses and diseases. One reason for people being undiagnosed is the absence of symptoms for many years, or that many of the early symptoms of...
Sinuses are hollow spaces in the bones of the face. Sinusitis or an infection of the sinuses is a common problem. Complications because of sinusitis are rare, because of the use of antibiotics, but they can occur in patients who take inadequate or...
Lung cancer strikes down more people---men and women---globally than any other type of cancer. In the United States alone, one out of every 14 individuals will develop this disease. Of those, less than one-half will survive the first year, and...
Generally, cystitis is caused by bacterial strains such as Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus saphrophyticus and Klesbsiella, according to the University of Maryland Medical Center. In complicated and severe infections, fungal cystitis can develop....
Molds are a type of fungi, and they can be found in houses and buildings and outdoors. Inside, they are commonly found in moist, dark areas such as corners of a bathroom or basement. They also commonly grow along water-damaged walls. Outside you...
Pneumonia is an infection that occurs in one or both lungs. Symptoms, including a cough with phlegm, are caused when air sacs fill with fluid or pus. Pneumonia is more serious in children and adults over the age of 65. An ordinary case of...
A blockage in the intestinal tract is referred to as an intestinal obstruction. The blockage usually occurs in the small intestine or colon and may be partial or complete. Partial blockages significantly hinder the movement of contents through the...
Tuberculosis is a contagious lung infection caused by the bacterium Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Symptoms of tuberculosis include fever, chills, unexplained weight loss, coughing, chest pain and fatigue. If you develop tuberculosis, your doctor may...
Tuberculosis, or TB, causes an infection in the lungs, but can also infect other parts of the body. TB spreads easily through airborne droplets, and repeated exposure to an infected person generally causes an infection. Two kinds of tests help...
Bronchiolitis obliterans organizing pneumonia, also called BOOP, is a somewhat rare but serious lung disease. BOOP causes inflammation of the bronchioles, called bronchiolitis. This condition also involves the surrounding lung tissue. The alveoli,...
In 2009, over 200,000 people were diagnosed with lung cancer--a type of cancer that affects the delicate tissues of the lungs and airway passages, explains the National Cancer Institute (NCI). People who smoke are at the highest risk of developing...
A hantavirus infection is a rare but often deadly viral infection. Infection with hantavirus causes a disease called hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, which disrupts lung capillaries. The virus is spread by rodents that shed the virus in their...
Pneumonia is a type of lung infection that can be caused by a number of bacterial or viral pathogens. Babies most often develop pneumonia symptoms as a result of a viral infection, explains MedlinePlus, an online medical resource provided by the...
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, until 2000, strep pneumonia causes 100,000 to 135,000 hospitalizations per year. Because of the pneumonia vaccine this rate has decreased to 13 cases per 100,000 people, says the CDC....
Sjogren's syndrome is a common, chronic, autoimmune disease chiefly causing dryness of the mucous membranes. Although different parts of the body can be affected, the disease primarily involves the tear and salivary glands. Ten times as many women...
Fungal pneumonia is a type of lung infection caused by fungi. Though this condition is uncommon in most people, those with compromised immune systems due to certain types of infection, such as HIV, are at an increased risk of developing fungal...
The H1N1 flu, also known as the swine flu, affected many Americans in 2009, note the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or CDC. This type of flu presented with the usual flu symptoms, but included shortness of breath and chest pain. It...
Influenza, or the flu, is a viral infection that affects the respiratory system including the nose, throat and lungs. Learn about influenza including symptoms, treatments and diagnosis in this health and disease video.
Respiratory infections are any infection of the lungs and respiratory tract. Learn about the different causes, symptoms, and treatments for respiratory infection in this health video.
If your chest starts to feel sore and you develop a cough followed by the chills or a slight fever, you just might have bronchitis. Bronchitis is a condition that occurs when the inner walls that line the main air passageways of your lungs become...
Influenza, more commonly referred to as the flu, is a viral infection that attacks the respiratory system, including your nose, throat, bronchial tubes and lungs. The flu should not be taken lightly. Thousands of people die of complications due to...
