PNEUMONIA
Its care andprevention
Copyright, 1940
John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance Company
of Boston, Massachusetts
L63-9-40
PNEUMONIA
ITS CARE AND PREVENTION
Life Conservation Service
of the
JOHN HANCOCK MUTUAL LIFE
INSURANCE COMPANY
of Boston, Massachusetts
An Urgent Message:
If you suspect that someone inyour family has pneumonia, it isvital that you call your doctorwithout a moment’s delay. If it ispneumonia, hours will count. Newlyintroduced drugs have proved ofgreat value in curing pneumonia butearly medical treatment and promptnursing care are necessary if thenew treatment is to do the mostgood.
That you may know somethingabout pneumonia, the kind of medicaltreatment and nursing carerequired, and the ways by which thedisease may be prevented, thispamphlet is sent to you.
Life Conservation Service
of the
John Hancock Mutual Life
Insurance Company
of Boston, Massachusetts
Pneumonia is an inflammation of the lungs.Despite all the progress recently made in thetreatment of the disease, it remains among themost common causes of death. Pneumonia isalways a serious matter, and should be regardedas an emergency calling for immediate medicalcare.
The inflammation of the lungs may be due to oneof a number of different kinds of germ, but thebacteria known as pneumococci cause about fourcases out of every five. There are several varieties,or types, of pneumococci and the treatment mayvary with the type. Your doctor has at his commandsome new drugs[A] but for some types of pneumoniahe may combine the drug with a curative serum.
[A] The different members of this new family of drugs, sulfanilamide,sulfapyridine, sulfathiazol, etc. are used dependingupon the nature of the pneumonia.
If the inflammation is due to one of the variousother germs that cause the remaining fifth of thepneumonia cases, still other treatment may beneeded. It is clear, then, that your physician shouldbe called promptly when pneumonia is suspectedso that he may have the laboratory tests made thatwill tell him with what kind of germ infection he[4]has to deal. Then he can decide what kind of treatmentto employ.
Pneumonia Is Contagious
Pneumonia appears to be spread from person toperson by contact, so it is regarded as a communicabledisease. As it is contagious, the spread ofinfection can be stopped if precautions are takento prevent the transfer of the infectious materialfrom the sick to the well. The secretions from thenose and throat of persons sick with pneumonia, orconvalescing from the disease, usually carry thegerms that cause it. The transfer may take placethrough direct contact with these secretions, orinhaling droplets of moist sputum expe