Pulmonary Infections

Pneumonia is a lung infection involving the alveoli and can be caused by a variety of microbes including bacteria, viruses, and fungi. It is the leading infectious cause of hospitalization and death in the United States [1]. In 2010, in the United States, pneumonia resulted in 1.1 million discharges from the hospital with an average length of stay of 5.2 days. Pneumonia accounted for 3.4 % of hospital deaths in 2006. In 2013 it accounted for 16.9 deaths per 100,000 population [2]. Pneumonia continues to be the leading killer of young children around the world, causing 14 % of all deaths in children ages 1 month to 5 years [3].