Vaccination against pneumonia

Introduction

Pneumonia is the acute or chronic inflammation of the lung tissue. This potentially life-threatening disease is usually caused by infections with bacteria, viruses, fungi or parasites. Infectious pneumonia can be prevented in many cases by vaccination.

The medical classification of pneumonia is complicated. However, the circumstances under which the pneumonia occurred provide a rough orientation. If the patient falls ill in the home environment, in a nursing home, or in an old people’s home, a so-called outpatient acquired pneumonia is present.

If a patient falls ill after a certain time in hospital, it is called nosocomial acquired pneumonia. A further subdivision is made according to the severity of the course. In the home environment, pneumonia usually develops at the bottom of an infection of the upper respiratory tract, as is the case, for example, with a viral influenza infection.

Due to the weakened defense mechanisms of the respiratory tract, bacteria can colonize the lung tissue and cause an inflammation. In almost half of all adults, these bacteria are so-called streptococci, chain bacteria that also occur on the oral mucosa in healthy people and are normally kept in check by the immune system. In hospital-acquired nosocomial pneumonia, a different bacterial spectrum must be assumed.

Here, the suspicion of hospital germs, some of which exhibit a broad spectrum of antibiotic resistance, comes to the fore. Some forms of pneumonia can be prevented by various vaccinations. Whether this makes sense for each individual should be clarified in the following sections

Who should be vaccinated against pneumonia?

As already mentioned in the introduction, a strong immune system helps to prevent the spread of bacteria in the airways and thus also in the lung tissue. This means that especially people with weakened immune systems are at risk of suffering from pneumonia. Older people are particularly at risk, especially if they are in community facilities such as old people’s homes or nursing homes.

Chronically ill and permanently weakened patients also run the risk of suffering pneumonia due to their reduced general condition. These include above all people who suffer from heart disease, chronic lung disease or diabetes. This is often accompanied by a permanently weakened immune system.

Alcoholism also leads to a weakened immune system in the long term. One of the diseases that permanently impair the body’s defenses is the immunodeficiency disease AIDS, triggered by the HI virus (HIV). Especially patients in the active stage of the disease (AIDS) often succumb to severe pneumonia.

In the case of underlying diseases, such as some types of cancer or severe rheumatic diseases, drug therapy can weaken the body’s defenses. Here too, patients are threatened by severe courses of pneumonia. The spleen is an important organ of the lymphatic system, including the immune system.

It is the storage location of monocytes, which belong to the white blood cells and fulfill important tasks in the immune defense. Patients who have had their spleens removed belong to the group of people who are particularly at risk of contracting pneumonia. Children are also considered particularly at risk of suffering from pneumonia. For all the above-mentioned groups of people, vaccination against the pathogens causing pneumonia should be considered.