Pneumonia or bronchitis, gradual onset of cough with little or no fever. Less common presentations are pharyngitis, laryngitis, and sinusitis. The spectrum of illness can range from asymptomatic infection to severe disease. Each year, an estimated 2-5 million cases of pneumonia and 500,000 pneumonia-related hospitalizations occur in the United States.

Causes

Person-to-person transmission by respiratory secretions is how it spreads.

Risk Factors

All ages at risk, but most common in school-age children. In the United States, about 50% of adults have evidence of past infection by age 20. Reinfection throughout life appears to be common.

Diagnosis

There is a lack of standardized diagnostic methods. Isolation of the etiologic agent is difficult, so antibody tests using paired acute- and convalescent-phase sera have been used for diagnosis. There are no known methods to prevent possible sequelae. The role of C. pneumoniae in atherosclerotic vascular disease needs further definition.

References

CDC