Chong Carol P, Street Philip R
Northern Clinical Research Centre, The Northern Hospital, 185 Cooper Street, Epping 3076, Victoria, Australia.
South Med J. 2008 Nov;101(11):1141-5; quiz 1132, 1179. doi: 10.1097/SMJ.0b013e318181d5b5.
Pneumonia is a common and important disease in the elderly. The incidence is expected to rise as the population ages, and, therefore, it will become an increasingly significant problem in hospitals and the community. A comprehensive literature review was performed in order to look at the characteristics of pneumonia in the elderly population. In particular, the epidemiology, etiology and pathogenesis--including risk factors, microbiology, and clinical features--were evaluated. While aging causes physiological changes which make elderly patients more susceptible to pneumonia, it was found that comorbidities, rather than age, are also an important risk factor. The most common micro-organism responsible for pneumonia is Streptococcus pneumoniae, but other organisms need to be considered, depending on the environment of presentation. Elderly patients are more likely than younger adults to present with an absence of fever and an altered mental state. Nursing home residents tend to present with more atypical and less characteristic symptoms.
肺炎是老年人常见且重要的疾病。随着人口老龄化，其发病率预计会上升，因此，它将在医院和社区中成为一个日益重要的问题。为了研究老年人群肺炎的特征，进行了全面的文献综述。特别对流行病学、病因学和发病机制——包括危险因素、微生物学和临床特征——进行了评估。虽然衰老会引起生理变化，使老年患者更容易患肺炎，但研究发现，合并症而非年龄也是一个重要的危险因素。引起肺炎最常见的微生物是肺炎链球菌，但根据发病环境，还需要考虑其他微生物。老年患者比年轻成年人更有可能不发热且精神状态改变。养老院居民往往表现出更不典型、特征性更不明显的症状。
