(NewsNation) — Cases of “walking pneumonia” are rising for the first time since the start of the pandemic, with health providers reporting an increase in young children.
Cases began climbing in the spring and peaked in late August, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Diagnoses appear to be rising the most among children, according to diagnosis data from March 31 through October 5, 2024. The percentage grew from 1% to 7.2% among children ages 2 to 4 years and from 3.6% to 7.4% among children ages 5 to 17 years, according to the CDC.
The agency said the increase in babies and toddlers is notable because the infection is historically known to affect school-age more than younger children.
“We’ve seen a dramatic increase in illness and hospitalization due to Mycoplasma pneumonia,” said Dr. Mary Fairchok, a pediatric infectious diseases doctor at Mary Bridge Children’s Hospital in Tacoma, Washington, told MedicalExpress. “Adults can get Mycoplasma too, but it’s really hitting the pediatric population.”
What is “walking pneumonia
Walking pneumonia is a respiratory tract infection caused by the bacterium mycoplasma pneumoniae, according to the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health.
It is the common term for atypical or a mild form of pneumonia.
Pneumonia is a lung infection that causes airways to swell, the air sacs in your lungs to fill with mucus and other fluids and a high fever and a cough with mucus, according to the Cleveland Clinic.
The main differences between walking pneumonia and the more common pneumonia is that the former is milder and usually doesn’t require bed rest or hospitalization, the clinic stated.
The highest rates of walking pneumonia generally occur in school-age children and teens, and people who have weakened immune systems or are recovering from another respiratory infection are at higher risk of severe infection.
What are the symptoms of walking pneumonia?
Symptoms include sore throat, fatigue, chest pain, cough and low-grade fever in adults. The infection doesn’t tend to cause much nasal or sinus congestion in adults, the medical center stated.
Walking pneumonia can feel like a bad cold or the flu.
Children under 5 may experience symptoms other than a chest cold, including nasal congestion, sneezing, and watery eyes or gastrointestinal symptoms like diarrhea and vomiting, according to the CDC.
The infection is highly contagious and spreads through droplets in the air through coughing and sneezing. It can take up to three to four weeks from the time someone was exposed to the germ to the time that they’re feeling sick.
Walking pneumonia may last from four to six weeks. A cough is usually the longest-lasting walking pneumonia symptom, according to the Cleveland Clinic.
How to test for walking pneumonia?
Medical professionals can test for walking pneumonia with a nose swab similar to the COVID-19 test, the Cleveland Clinic stated.
They could also order chest X-rays to see if there’s an infection in the lungs. Providers can also do a blood test and send the sample to a laboratory to confirm the infection.
How to treat walking pneumonia
The infection, like most, can be treated with antibiotics. Hospitalization is generally rare with this infection.
Most people can recover on their own, but over-the-counter medicine can help ease symptoms.
Why are cases rising?
The infection has risen to levels unseen since the pandemic.
The reason why it dropped since 2020 is because of infection prevention measures that went into place, like social distancing and masking, reported Johns Hopkins.
“In North America, we began to detect M. pneumoniae more frequently on tests in 2024. Since the summer, the proportion of tests that are positive for M. pneumoniae has gone up and is still going up right now,” the organization stated.
