It clearly follows that normal respiration requires not only free passage of air into the air-chambers but also thin, unencumbered alveolar walls that can permit easy diffusion of the respiratory gases in and out of the circulating blood in the lungs. Infiltrate the walls of the airchambers, and form a barrier interfering with the diffusion of gases between the air within the lungs' chambers and the circulating blood in the thin blood vessels of the walls. The severity of pneumonia depends on a number of factors including how dangerous is the infecting organism, the closeness and amount of exposure and the health condition of the patient. Mycoplasma pneumonia affects primarily adults below 40 years of age and children.
Mycoplasma infections occur year round but are more common in late summer and fall.
Mycoplasma pneumonia is infectious and is spread through contact with droplets expelled from the nose and throat of affected people when they sneeze or cough. Generally the transmission of the disease requires a relatively prolonged close contact with an infected person, and most transmissions occur within families. Symptoms begin about 15-25 days after being exposed to an infected person, and develop gradually over the next two to four days. Typical symptoms may include fever, chills, excessive sweating, sore throat, a cough that may or may not be productive, malaise and occasional chest pain. Symptoms may persist for a few days to more than a month.