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The 1918 Influenza A Pandemic
Published in Patricia G. Melloy, Viruses and Society, 2023
Interferon is one of the major cytokines mobilized in the innate immune system response to the influenza virus (Couch 1996). Researchers studying influenza have found that certain influenza viral proteins can reduce gene expression in the host cell, affecting the timing and level of interferon expression (Krammer et al. 2018). The adaptive immune system also kicks in to make antibodies against the influenza virus, specific to the subtype. Scientists have found that there is something important about the first antibody response to an influenza virus subtype, and that this response may affect all future responses to influenza virus subtypes encountered later in life. Influenza antibodies made in childhood can be detected in the elderly (Krammer et al. 2018; Couch 1996; Dhakal and Klein 2019). If the body cannot fight off the infection, it can lead to a viral pneumonia. In addition, the patient could suffer from secondary bacterial infections like bacterial pneumonia (Couch 1996).
Respiratory Diseases
Published in Amy J. Litterini, Christopher M. Wilson, Physical Activity and Rehabilitation in Life-threatening Illness, 2021
Amy J. Litterini, Christopher M. Wilson
Respiratory infections are a major public health concern globally. Pneumonia, a viral, bacterial, or fungal infection of the alveoli, can occur in one or both lungs. Most frequently diagnosed on a chest radiograph, pneumonia is usually defined as community-acquired or hospital-acquired. The most common form of bacterial pneumonia is associated with streptococcus (pneumococcus), while many types of viral pneumonia are associated with pathogens such as influenza and coronavirus. Those at a higher risk for acquiring bacterial pneumonia include older individuals, those recovering from injury, illness, or surgery, those with concurrent medical conditions, and/or individuals with tobacco use disorder. Those with viral pneumonia are at risk of developing bacterial pneumonia. A rarer form of pneumonia, chemical pneumonia, is associated with lung inflammation caused by exposure to liquids, gases, or small particles.
How Artificial Intelligence and IoT Aid in Fighting COVID-19
Published in Fadi Al-Turjman, AI-Powered IoT for COVID-19, 2020
Abdullahi Umar Ibrahim, Mehmet Ozsoz, Fadi Al-Turjman, Pwadubashiyi Pwavodi Coston, Basil Bartholomew Duwa
Viral pneumonia is caused by different strains of viruses. In order to distinguish between some of these strains, Xu et al. (2020) utilized artificial intelligence models to distinguish between COVID-19, Influenza-A viral pneumonia, and healthy cases acquired from positive and negative patient’s computed tomography (CT) images. The research utilized 618 total CT scans images, 219 images from 110 patients with COVID-19, 224 CT images from 224 patients with the Influenza-A virus, and 175 CT images from healthy people. The images were trained using a 3-dimensional deep learning model and the result achieved an overall accuracy of 86.7%.
The protective effect of 999 XiaoErGanMao granules on the lungs and intestines of influenza A virus-infected mice
Published in Pharmaceutical Biology, 2023
Yuan-zhen Hao, Li-feng Cen, Ting Wang, Tong Yi, Xun-long Shi, Hui-juan Duan, Zhi Dai, Hai-yan Zhu, Jian-guo Tang
Influenza virus infection is an acute infectious respiratory disease that seriously threatens human health (Iuliano et al. 2018; Krammer et al. 2018). Influenza A virus (IAV) is a common cause of pediatric respiratory diseases (Kumar 2017). The lungs, intestines, spleens, and other organs of children are not fully developed and hence more vulnerable to the influenza virus, as per the consensus reached based on the theory of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). Past research has demonstrated that there have been 109.5 million influenza virus episodes in children under 5 years across the world in 2018 alone (Wang et al. 2020). Common symptoms after influenza infection include cough, fever, and headache, which are the same as those in adults (Fraaij and Heikkinen 2011; Ruf and Knuf 2014; Nayak et al. 2021; Watanabe et al. 2021). Influenza virus infection often causes viral pneumonia in the face of weak immune defense and excessive viral burden in children (Wang et al. 2020). Notably, in children, viral pneumonia is often accompanied by gastrointestinal symptoms, such as nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, and diarrhea (Wang et al. 2003; Hien et al. 2004; Abdel-Ghafar et al. 2008), implying that IAV can indirectly induce an intestinal immune injury.
Pulmonary recovery after COVID-19 – a review
Published in Expert Review of Respiratory Medicine, 2023
Thomas Sonnweber, Sailer Birgit, Günter Weiss, Judith Löffler-Ragg
The coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) pandemic has resulted in at least 676 million documented infections worldwide and resulted in more than 6.8 million deaths, as of April 2023 [1]. Respiratory failure is the leading cause of death and the pandemic has led to an unprecedented surge in hospitalized patients with viral pneumonia. Thus, pulmonary sequelae of the COVID-19 pandemic pose a major challenge to healthcare systems both in acute and post-acute care. The severity of lung injury was already remarkable at the historical beginning of this new infectious disease, in December 2019, when a cluster of patients with ‘mystery pneumonia’ was observed in Wuhan, China, and a novel coronavirus was identified as the causative pathogen [2]. On 11 March 2020, the WHO declared the COVID-19 outbreak a global pandemic due to the rapid spread and severity of droplet- and aerosol-transmitted SARS-CoV-2 infections around the world [3].
Emerging strategies in nanotechnology to treat respiratory tract infections: realizing current trends for future clinical perspectives
Published in Drug Delivery, 2022
Minhua Chen, Zhangxuan Shou, Xue Jin, Yingjun Chen
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lungs which affect primarily lung air sacs (alveoli). Alveolar spaces are occupied by pus and fluid which distress breathing and confine oxygen uptake. The lesions appear inside alveoli, often associated with buds of granulation tissue that inhibit the bronchiolar lumen resulting in lung abrasions (Al-Tubaikh, 2010). Many etiological agents are accountable for pneumonia including pathogenic bacteria; S. pneumoniae, H. influenzae, S. aureus, gram-negative bacilli, M. pneumoniae, Acinetobacter baumanni, Stenotrophomonas maltophilia, and opportunistic fungi that reach alveoli by micro aspiration of oropharynges secretion (Sanivarapu & Gibson, 2021). Certain viruses, i.e. coronavirus, adenoviruses, influenza virus, and respiratory syncytial viruses are also responsible for the spread of viral pneumonia (Muhammad et al., 2022). The therapy is initiated after the conformation of an etiological agent and the severity of the disease then the treatment starts in a rational way to treat the development of these resistant strains. However, the current treatment of pneumonia is ineffective due to adverse toxic effects related to antibiotics (vancomycin) and inefficient effects against multidrug resistance (B. Kim et al., 2018). Therefore, nanotechnology is an emerging technique to overcome hurdles in this regulatory fatal infection (Figure 2).