The cause of a cyanotic and irritable cough is not asthma but pneumonia. Coughs and chills that the child experiences are due to pronounced pneumonia. The symptoms are also visible in paroxysmal coughing and fast breathing. The temperature noted is 103 degrees, which confirms pneumonia. The reported issues of cough and congestion for the last two weeks also confirm the condition of pneumonia. The presence of highly elevated leukocyte count is also the cause of enlarged lymph nodes, a prominent condition of pneumonia (Zhang, Qiu, Tang, & Xu, 2017). The condition and x-ray results of the child depict that he did not catch the disease from his exposure to the neighbourhood child. The conditions indicate that the child did not have asthma, as the infectious agent is pneumonia. The assumption of the mother is wrong as the child does not have asthma. Common viruses that lead to the development of pneumonia include influenza, haemophiliac influenza, measles and varicella. Viruses and bacteria are more common in causing pneumonia.
Medicine reveals that the disease of pneumonia is preventable as several vaccines are available that minimize the risks. The vaccines are effective in preventing infections from the bloodstream. Early vaccination during childhood minimizes the risks of developing pneumonia. Personal hygiene eliminates the risks of developing pneumonia. The common self-care practices involve washing hands regularly and limiting contact with smokers and tissues used for sneezing or coughing. To cure the child with pneumonia, the mother needs to seek medical care as several vaccines exist that work to treat children with the disease. Vaccines improve the survival and health of the child by removing viruses of pneumonia (Madhi & Klugman, 2004). Haemophilus influenza, streptococcus pneumonia and Hib are common vaccines used to treat children with pneumonia (Madhi, Levine, Hajjeh, Mansoor, & Cheriand, 2008).
References
Zhang, L., Qiu, S., Tang, C., & Xu, J. (2017). Adult community-acquired pneumonia with unusually enlarged mediastinal lymph nodes: A case report. Exp Ther Med, 14 (1), 87–90.
Madhi, S. A., & Klugman, K. P. (2004). A role for Streptococcus pneumoniae in virus-associated pneumonia. Nat Med, 10, 811–
Madhi, S. A., Levine, O. S., Hajjeh, R., Mansoor, O. D., & Cheriand, T. (2008). Vaccines to prevent pneumonia and improve child survival. Bull World Health Organ, 65 (5), 365–372.
