Pneumonia

Sepsis and septic shock can result from an infection anywhere in the body, including pneumonia. Pneumonia can be community-acquired, meaning that a person becomes ill with pneumonia outside of the hospital. Pneumonia can also be caused by a healthcare-associated infection (HAI), which affect 1.7 million hospitalizations in the United States every year. An HAI is an infection contracted by people while the hospital for a different reason, such as surgery or treatment for another illness.

Sepsis, which was often called blood poisoning, is the body’s life-threatening response to infection. Like strokes or heart attacks, sepsis is a medical emergency that requires rapid diagnosis and treatment.

Sepsis and septic shock can result from an infection anywhere in the body, such as influenza or urinary tract infections. Worldwide, one-third of people who develop sepsis die. Many who do survive are left with life-changing effects, such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), chronic pain and fatigue,  organ dysfunction (organs don’t work properly), and/or amputations.

The most common source of infection among adults is the lungs.

pneumonia is one of the most common infections leading to sepsis

What is pneumonia?

Pneumonia is an infection in the lungs. The infection can be only in one lung, or it can be in both. There are several causes of pneumonia but the most common are:

Left untreated, the infection can be deadly. In the days before antibiotics, it’s estimated that about one-third of those who developed bacterial pneumonia died.

 Symptoms

Some people can have pneumonia and not know it, but the most common signs and symptoms are:

  • Fever
  • Cough, with phlegm
  • Shortness of breath
  • Sweating
  • Shaking chills
  • Headache
  • Muscle pain
  • Fatigue
  • Chest pain with breathing

You do not have to have all these symptoms to have pneumonia.

Who is at higher risk for developing the infection?

While anyone can develop pneumonia, some people are at higher risk than others. These include:

  • The elderly
  • The very young
  • People who recently had a cold, influenza, or COVID-19
  • Smokers
  • Having a respiratory illness, such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
  • Exposure to certain inhaled toxins
  • Recent surgery
  • People in intensive care units
  • People who are malnourished

What is the treatment?

Treatment depends on the type of infection you have.

Bacterial

Antibiotics treat bacterial pneumonia. The type of antibiotics your doctor may choose depends on the bacteria causing the infection. If you have a prescription for antibiotics, you should finish all the medication, even if you start to feel better. You will begin to feel more like yourself before the infection is completely gone. If you stop the medications before the infection disappears, you could get a more serious pneumonia that can’t be treated as easily.

Viral

Viral pneumonia does not respond to antibiotics; they will not do any good. In general, there isn’t much that can be done for viral pneumonia other than advising that you rest and take in plenty of fluids to stay hydrated. In some cases, doctors may prescribe an anti-viral medication, but this is not common.

Fungal

Medications called anti-fungals treat fungal pneumonia.

Preventing pneumonia

Sometimes we can prevent pneumonia. If you have surgery that requires general anesthetic, you could be at risk for developing a bacterial pneumonia. To lower the risk, get up and out of bed after the surgery. If you can’t get up and move around, breathe deeply and cough on a regular basis. This is to help keep your lungs clear.

There is a vaccine that can help prevent a common type of pneumonia called pneumococcal pneumonia, caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae. There is also a vaccine that doctors can give children to decrease the risk of developing one of four types of infections:

  • Meningitis (infection in the brain)
  • Bacteremia (infection in the blood)
  • Otitis media (infection in the middle ear)
  • Pneumonia

Doctors recommend the vaccine for the elderly and for people at high risk of developing pneumonia. If you fall into one of those categories, you may want to discuss this with your doctor.

If you suspect sepsis, call 9-1-1 or go to a hospital and tell your medical professional, “I AM CONCERNED ABOUT SEPSIS.” 

The information here is also available as a Sepsis Information Guide, which is a downloadable format for easier printing.

Would you like to share your story about sepsis or read about others who have had sepsis? Please visit Faces of Sepsis, where you will find hundreds of stories from survivors and tributes to those who died from sepsis.

Suggested Citation: Sepsis Alliance. Sepsis and Pneumonia. 2022. https://www.sepsis.org/sepsisand/pneumonia/

Updated October 18, 2022.

Read Personal Stories of Sepsis and Pneumonia

Sherry Parsons

Survivor

In October 2008 I started getting chills and body aches, I thought it was just a typical flu bug, boy was i wrong. 3 days after feeling ill I started hallucinating, and within a couple hours I couldn’t walk anymore, so my husband rushed me to the emergency. 2 hours after arriving I lost consciousness. When I came to I was told I was put on a ventilator for 2 weeks as i had double pneumonia and sepsis. (Sepsis and Pneumonia) they had to do fluid resuscitation and my blood oxygen level was 38. I wasn’t supposed to live but ... Read Full Story

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Dawn McPherson

Survivor, Survivor

I went septic from walking pneumonia on Dec 18, 2004. (Sepsis and Pneumonia) I had all my toes amputated after they turned black on Jan 9. 2005. (Sepsis and Amputations) The heel of my right foot also was black and there was a skin graft performed on it with a piece of skin cut from my thigh. My purpose of submitting this is hopes of finding other survivors like me to help me understand how to walk again. I can walk but am in severe pain and have developed large blisters and callous. Over the last 16 years I have ... Read Full Story

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Francisco Tienda

Survivor, Survivor, Survivor

I went in for a meniscus repair on 10/ 1/2020.. At post op appointment on 10/9/21 I woke up with fluid coming out of incisions. Doctor said to apply a bandaid, ice and elevate. The pain/drainage got worse. (Sepsis and Surgery) My daughter rushed me to the hospital on 10/23/21.; infection in the joint and in blood. I went into multi-organ failure and was put into an induced coma. Within 24 hours the doctors thought I would die. I was in a coma for 10 days. Spent 45 days in hospital got out on November 30,2020, My wife found new ... Read Full Story

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Poppy F.

Survivor, Survivor, Survivor, Survivor

My name is Poppy, and I want to tell you my full story to make sure you know the signs of sepsis- it almost took my life. I was 36 weeks pregnant. My breathing had been shallow for a week and it hurt to move; to describe the pain, it felt like I had been kicked in the ribs, like an awful stitch or heartburn every time I moved. It was becoming hard even just to sit up in bed in the morning because every moment sent ripples of pain through my body. (Sepsis and Pregnancy & Childbirth) I knew ... Read Full Story

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Kimberly Neal

Survivor, Survivor, Survivor, Survivor, Survivor

It was December 23, 2017. I didn’t know anything was wrong. I’d been diagnosed with bronchitis two days before, but with medicine, I was feeling fine. I laid down for a nap that afternoon. When I woke there were bright lights and doctors and nurses surrounding me. I couldn’t stay awake. They kept asking if I’d taken anything? No. My husband said I’d been asleep all day. He was alarmed when I started breathing funny. Know now it was called “The Death Rattle.” He tried to wake me with hard slaps and I wasn’t responding. I was unconscious by then. ... Read Full Story

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Pneumonia

Sepsis and septic shock can result from an infection anywhere in the body, including pneumonia. Pneumonia can be community-acquired, meaning that a person becomes ill with pneumonia outside of the hospital. Pneumonia can also be caused by a healthcare-associated infection (HAI), which affect 1.7 million hospitalizations in the United States every year. An HAI is an infection contracted by people while the hospital for a different reason, such as surgery or treatment for another illness.