Feel free to reprint all or part of an article. Please credit Mayo Clinic Health Letter. More than 40,000 Americans die from the illness annually. Preventing pneumonia, an infection or inflammation of the lung, is best. But, if it strikes, catching it early offers the best chance for recovery, according to the December issue of Mayo Clinic Health Letter.
Pneumonia can range from a mild illness to a life-threatening condition.
It is usually treated with antibiotics. Viral This type can be caused by the influenza virus or other viruses. It tends to be more serious in people with heart or lung disease. It usually strikes in the fall and winter, and symptoms include a dry cough, headache, fever, muscle pain and fatigue. These symptoms can progress to a cough that produces phlegm and breathlessness.