Can pneumonia symptoms include swollen feet?

Written by Yuan Qing
Pulmonology
Updated on May 19, 2025
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Pneumonia generally does not cause swelling of the feet. Pneumonia is mainly due to various infectious or physicochemical factors that damage our alveoli, causing inflammation in the lungs, which leads to pneumonia. The main symptoms of pneumonia include coughing, fever, difficulty breathing, chest tightness, and expectoration. Generally, swelling of the feet does not occur. The occurrence of foot swelling is mostly due to right heart failure or poor venous flow in the cavity, and the stagnation of blood flow in the lower limbs leads to this edema. If this occurs, it is important to consider whether it is due to heart failure in the elderly, or conditions such as kidney or liver diseases leading to hypoalbuminemia, and relevant tests should be conducted. This is not a complication caused by pneumonia itself, but rather a problem with some other organs of the patient.

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Written by Yang Feng
Pulmonology
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How to diagnose pneumonia

Pneumonia is a common infectious disease of the respiratory system. Its main diagnostic methods include routine blood tests, C-reactive protein, and pulmonary imaging, among which pulmonary imaging is the gold standard for diagnosing pneumonia. Diagnosis can also be initially inferred from the patient's clinical presentation and medical history to determine the likelihood of a pneumonia infection. Once pneumonia is confirmed, there is no need for excessive worry. Active medication to control the infection can cure pneumonia. Therefore, anti-inflammatory treatment should continue once pneumonia is diagnosed.

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Written by Hu Xue Jun
Pulmonology
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Can pneumonia be cured?

Can pneumonia be cured, and will there be any sequelae? Generally speaking, common pneumonia without complications can be completely cured. If pneumonia infection is detected, seek medical attention in a timely manner and treat it rationally under the guidance of a professional doctor, it generally will not leave sequelae or affect lung function. However, some complications of pneumonia, such as meningitis and pericarditis, may leave symptoms like headaches, dizziness, palpitations, and chest pain. Ordinary pneumonia might leave streaky shadows or irregular pleura on chest X-rays or lung CT scans, but these will not impact the human body. Patients who have previously been infected with tuberculosis may have calcification spots in their lungs, which is a normal phenomenon. Some people may experience sequelae after treatment, such as hearing loss caused by the use of antimicrobial drugs, and avascular necrosis of the femoral head occurring after SARS treatment; however, these are possibly side effects of the drugs, rather than sequelae of pneumonia.

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Written by Hu Xue Jun
Pulmonology
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Is pneumonia contagious?

Pneumonia can be divided into many types, including viral pneumonia, bacterial pneumonia, and those caused by special bacteria such as tuberculosis bacillus, and atypical bacteria such as Legionella, Mycoplasma, Chlamydia, etc. Generally, pneumonia does not cause large-scale disseminated transmission, because most people have normal immune systems that can resist these less virulent bacteria; however, in populations with lower immunity, inhaling droplets from patients with bacterial pneumonia can potentially lead to pneumonia. However, pneumonias caused by "SARS", anthrax, pneumonic plague, etc., are highly contagious and can cause large-scale transmission through droplets, and these are strictly controlled infectious diseases in our country. In cases of open tuberculosis, the patient's sputum and cough droplets might contain the pathogen, which could then infect those in close contact. Infectious pneumonia typically has an abrupt onset, with an incubation period of 2-10 days, and fever as the initial symptom, generally above 38℃, possibly accompanied by chills, coughing, scant sputum, occasional bloody sputum, palpitations, shortness of breath, and in some cases, difficulty breathing. It may also be accompanied by muscle soreness, headaches, joint pain, fatigue, and diarrhea.

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Written by Yuan Qing
Pulmonology
54sec home-news-image

Can pneumonia symptoms include swollen feet?

Pneumonia generally does not cause swelling of the feet. Pneumonia is mainly due to various infectious or physicochemical factors that damage our alveoli, causing inflammation in the lungs, which leads to pneumonia. The main symptoms of pneumonia include coughing, fever, difficulty breathing, chest tightness, and expectoration. Generally, swelling of the feet does not occur. The occurrence of foot swelling is mostly due to right heart failure or poor venous flow in the cavity, and the stagnation of blood flow in the lower limbs leads to this edema. If this occurs, it is important to consider whether it is due to heart failure in the elderly, or conditions such as kidney or liver diseases leading to hypoalbuminemia, and relevant tests should be conducted. This is not a complication caused by pneumonia itself, but rather a problem with some other organs of the patient.

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Written by Li Jiao Yan
Neonatology
1min 16sec home-news-image

Is the pneumonia vaccine self-funded?

The pneumonia vaccine is primarily aimed at preventing pneumonia caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae infection. Streptococcus pneumoniae is the most significant and common bacterium causing pneumonia worldwide. This bacterium is also the most common cause of community-acquired pneumonia in children and is the main pathogen causing otitis media, meningitis, and bacteremia in children. Currently, there are two types of pneumonia vaccines available in China: the 23-valent polysaccharide vaccine, which is suitable for people over two years old, and the 7-valent vaccine, which is suitable for infants under two years old. According to the regulations on vaccine distribution and vaccination management implemented in our country, vaccines are clearly divided into two categories: the first category includes vaccines provided free by the government to citizens, who are required to be vaccinated according to government regulations; the second category includes other vaccines that are paid for and voluntarily received by citizens. The pneumonia vaccine belongs to the second category, which is a self-funded vaccine.