DIPLOCOCCUS PNEUMONIA 95 



DIPLOCOCCUS (STREPTOCOCCUS) PNEUMONlffi. 



Pneumonia or inflammation of the lungs may be caused 

 by a great many organisms, but by far the commonest one 

 is the Diplococcus or Streptococcus pneumonic? or pneumo- 

 coccus. This omnipresent organism gains entrance to the 

 body almost exclusively by the nose or mouth. It enters 

 the air passages and penetrates to the finer parts of the lungs, 

 there setting up a rather characteristic inflammation. In 

 certain types of pneumonia the disease may involve whole 

 lobes; again, small patches here and there may be involved, 

 the intervening tissue being practically normal. From the 

 lungs the bacteria naturally penetrate into the blood stream. 

 This emphasizes the fact that while pneumonia expresses 

 itself chiefly in the lungs, it is in reality a general infection. 

 It should, moreover, be included among the transmissible 

 infections because it appears in epidemics, and definite 

 instances of communication directly from the sick to the 

 well are known. 



By reason of the spread of pneumococci through the blood, 

 complications in the form of involvement of nearly every 

 tissue in the body may result. The interior of the heart, the 

 pleura, and the meninges are most commonly affected. These 

 organisms may also cause conjunctivitis, tonsillitis, otitis, 

 and arthritis. 



For diagnosis bacteriologically, cultures are made from 

 the sputum, selecting the blood-streaked specimens, and of 

 the blood. Read pages 73 to 75 for collection of sputum 

 for bacteriological purposes. Sputum should be disinfected 

 by receiving it directly in 5 per cent, carbolic solution. Not 

 only must care be used to collect sputum, but the lips and 

 cheeks of the patient should be kept clean, and all attend- 

 ants should rinse their nose and throat frequently with 

 hydrogen peroxide or Dobell's solution. Pneumococci do 

 not live long on objects, but may be transferred by persons 

 in the hair and nasopharynx, in which places the germs are 



