12. Shortness of Breath
People with pneumonia experience a dramatic inflammation of the tissues in the lungs. The disease affects the bronchial tubes and alveoli, the tiny air sacs found at the end of the bronchial tubes. The alveoli are responsible for exchanging carbon dioxide circulating in the body, for the oxygen they breathe into the lungs.
However, people with pneumonia experience and abnormality in this gaseous exchange, increasing their body’s inability to deal with carbon dioxide. As a result of these symptoms, the patient will notice that they develop shortness of breath when moving, and climbing a flight of stairs will leave them breathing heavily. Unfortunately, there is no immediate treatment for these symptoms, and the affected individual will have to wait for the bacteria to die off before their lungs return to standard working capacity.
Some individuals that smoke cigarettes and receive pneumonia due to the progression of chronic bronchitis may notice that these symptoms of shortness of breath hang around for months after the infection clears.