It is also called lobular, capillary bronchitis or Capillary pneumonia. Edwards is ofthe view that “Clinically (i.e. Broncho-Pneumonia) is identical with capillary bronchitis, which, if it occurs in the first yeats of life, never spares the lung tissue; it is marked by fever, cough, dyspnoea and cyanosis, which may often co-exist without obvious signs of hepatisation.”
Predisposing causes in the young are poor sanitation, scrofula, tuberculosis, scrofula, syphilis and rickets.
Symptoms
Preliminary Form : Onset of disease is sudden, with chill, vomiting, convulsion, pain in the chest, rapid rise of temperature. This form is not very common.
Secondary Form.: This is a most common form that begins more assiduously and is generally marked by the symptoms of the disease which is complicated due to obscurity factor. Fever is high and may be either intermittent or remittent (Temperature normally touches 104 degree F or even higher); pulse rate ranges between 150-170 and its return to normaly is rather tardy; respiration usually 60-80 with cry (grunt) with each respiration. Breathlessness is highly marked and also appears in the early stage of disease. Cough, though varying in each patient, is always severe, causes cyanosis of face and other parts as it disturbs flow of blood to the heart. Children and infants, due to lack of experience to cough out phlegm, usually swallow the same. To the above symptoms gangrene, abscess, pleurisy, pulmonary induration etc. may be added to get clear picture of the disease.
Expelled sputum may be tenacious/sticky, blood-streaked and scant, but most of the symptoms get relieved when sputum is expelled, even though with much effort and straining. It may be noted that presence of purulent sputum is indicative of bacterial infection. Air flow obstruction causes breathlessness which is caused by excessive cigarette smoking and unfavourable and adverse atmospheric conditions. Further, it is not that all patients suffer from obstructed air-flow syndrome but, when it sets in, it is most likely to complicate and worsen the course of treatment. When lungs are cleared by coughing out of sputum, wheezing sounds may abate or even disappear but sound of inhaled and exhaled air is quite audible.
Respiratory capability of a patient can be gauged by having a six-minute walking test which will point out to actual disability and gradually declining resistance of the patient. In all probability, symptoms of’emphysema’ exist (which means over inflation of normal lung and abnormal presence of air in body tissues other than lungs.) ‘Emphysema’ is also caused by cigarette smoking. Hence, when this is the basic cause, symptoms arc usually akin, hence not easy to isolate.