COPING WITH…Pneumonia

This lung infection can kill so it should always be taken seriously, says Dr Melanie Wynne-Jones

- Dr Melanie Wynne-Jones

Pneumonia means inflammation of our lung cells (alveoli). Their walls become swollen with fluid that makes it harder for oxygen and carbon dioxide to exchange in the bloodstream.

Around 1% of us get community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) each year – 100,000 people are admitted to hospital in England alone. This is only a tiny proportion of the millions of us who get coughs, colds or bronchitis. Usually self-treatable (see box), they occasionally require antibiotics.