Mycoplasma infection is another name for walking pneumonia. The Mycoplasma pneumoniae bacterium causes walking pneumonia. This isn’t as serious as regular pneumonia and most patients aren’t in the hospital or bedridden when they have it. This condition tends to hit young people quite severely with about 75 percent of the cases being those in the 5-16 year age group. There are about two million diagnosed each year with this condition in the United States.
Symptoms
This is the least serious form of pneumonia. You may not even realize that you have the condition and go about your day to day activities thinking you just have a cold. There are no noticeable symptoms in the early stages but as it develops you may become tired which can increase in severity. There may be throat problems, a fever, and headaches associated with walking pneumonia. Sudden chills are quite common along with pains in the ears, abdominal area, eyes, chests, or in the muscles. Another common symptom is a runny nose that doesn’t let up.
This condition can create a cough that is very spasmodic but doesn’t produce much mucus and the throat becomes sore due to the coughing episodes. The breathing may become shallow or rapid because of fatigue. Weakness is always persistent and may take several days to leave even after there are no more symptoms present. Symptoms may take 1 to 3 weeks to show up in their full forms and this is called the incubation period. There’s a gradual loss of energy levels until the person is exhausted and then the other symptoms start to occur. Mild cases of this condition are frequently never reported because they appear to the person as a common cold or a mild flu.
Treatment
Most cases tend to clear up on their own without any treatment at all. If you have any symptoms for a long period then a doctor should be consulted to make sure you don’t have other serious forms of pneumonia. You may not be bedridden due to this condition but the symptoms can be quite annoying and interfere with your life. It’s not advisable that you go to work or school if you have this condition. Antibiotics are administered in cases that require it but for most people just and fluids will do. In some rare cases there are intravenous antibiotics given to patients.