Common Pneumonia exam questions for medical finals, OSCEs and MRCP PACES
Question 1.
What organisms cause Pneumonia?
- Bacterial
- Strep pneumonia
- Haemophilus influenza
- Mycoplasma pneumonia
- Young people
- Headache, malaise and cough
- WCC can be normal
- Cold agglutinins in 50%
- Other complications: pericarditis, myocarditis, erythema multiforme, D&V, meningoencephalitis
- Treatment
- Erythromycin
- Doxy is second line.
- Has no cell wall, so pen and cef useless
- Erythromycin
- Legionella
- Middle-aged smokers (M>F 2:1)
- Presentaiton
- Mild WCC, hyponatraemia
- Proteinuria and haematuria
- Investigations
- Urinary antigen is pretty easy
- IgG and IgM titres in urine, blood or sputum
- Treatment
- Erythromycin
- Rif if allergic
- Erythromycin
- Staph aureus
- Moraxella
- Chlamydia pneumoniae
- Chlamydia psittacosis
- Viral
- Influenza
- Fungal
- Aspergilloma
- Invasive aspergillosis
- Diffuse shadowing on CXR
- ABPA
- High IgE and abs to aspergillus (skin prick positive)
- CXR: perihilar infiltrates
- Sputum: hyphae
- Biopsy: stains with H&E (unusual for a fungi)
- Treatment – Antifungals. Itraconazole in ABPA
- Aspiration
- Eosinophilic pneumonia
- Flitting peripheral X-Ray shadows
- Large numbers of eosinophils on BAL
· Treat with steroids
- Tropical pulmonary eosinophilia
- Immune reaction wuceria bancroftii
- Patchy infiltrates on CXR and all the other systemic pneumonia things including lymphadenopathy
- Treatment: diethylcarbamizine
- Organising pneumonia (often cryptogenic)
- Pneumonia, which then recurs on a different place.
- Non-specific malaise and dry cough as well
- CT: patchy avlveolar opacities (granulation tissue)
- Treatment
- Steroids
Question 2.
What are indications for ITU admission with pneumonia?
- Persistent hypoxia
- Acidosis
- Hypercapnia
- Hypotension
- Reduced GCS