Occult pneumonia is a

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severi ...

that is not observable directly by the eye, but can only be shown indirectly, especially by

radiography Radiography is an imaging technique using X-rays, gamma rays, or similar ionizing radiation and non-ionizing radiation to view the internal form of an object. Applications of radiography include medical radiography ("diagnostic" and "therapeu ...

. Occult pneumonia can be made visible by chest X-rays. The general symptoms ''cough for more than 10 days'' and ''fever for more than 3 days'' can indicate the presence of occult pneumonia, just as a temperature of 39 °C or higher and a high white blood cell count.C.G. Murphy et al
''Clinical predictors of occult pneumonia in the febrile child.''
Acad. Emerg. Med. 14(3), 243–249 (2007) . Administration of a pneumococcal vaccine decreases the incidence of occult pneumonia, which suggests that ''

Streptococcus pneumoniae ''Streptococcus pneumoniae'', or pneumococcus, is a Gram-positive, spherical bacteria, alpha-hemolytic (under aerobic conditions) or beta-hemolytic (under anaerobic conditions), aerotolerant anaerobic member of the genus Streptococcus. They ar ...

'' is a cause of occult pneumonia. Occult pneumonia, however, can also be the result of

atypical pneumonia Atypical pneumonia, also known as walking pneumonia, is any type of pneumonia not caused by one of the pathogens most commonly associated with the disease. Its clinical presentation contrasts to that of "typical" pneumonia. A variety of microorgan ...

.Commission on Acute Respiratory Diseases, Fort Bragg, North Carolin
Primary Atypical Pneumonia
American Journal of Public Health, April, 1944; Vol. 34 Although pneumococcal vaccination lowers the prevalence of occult pneumonia, it does not make radiographic

diagnosis Diagnosis is the identification of the nature and cause of a certain phenomenon. Diagnosis is used in many different disciplines, with variations in the use of logic, analytics, and experience, to determine " cause and effect". In systems engin ...

superfluous at patients with prolonged fever, cough or

leukocytosis Leukocytosis is a condition in which the white cell (leukocyte count) is above the normal range in the blood. It is frequently a sign of an inflammatory response, most commonly the result of infection, but may also occur following certain parasi ...

. Etymology: the term is derived from the Latin ''occultus'' = hidden, secret and ''pneumonia'' = inflammation of the lungs > Greek: ''pneuma'' = wind and Indo-European: ''pleumon'' = floating, swimming.van Dale, Etymologisch woordenboek; 1ste dr., 1989

References

{{reflist Pneumonia

See also

References