Pneumonia

Massive bacterial infections, such as the kind that killed Muppet master Jim Henson, are best treated with antibiotics and speed. But Henson evidently had passed the "point of no return" by the time he sought treatment, according to a professor at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania (HUP). Henson died Wednesday of a quick-spreading bacterial pneumonia. Robert Austrian, professor and chairman emeritus of the Department of Research Medicine at HUP, said yesterday that the bacteria, streptococcus, "can kill a patient rather quickly.

JOSEPH C. LANZA, a Philadelphia Orchestra violinist since 1958, died of pneumonia early Saturday morning. He was 73. "His life was the orchestra," Roslyn, his wife of 53 years said. "He was totally committed and dedicated to music. " On Saturday evening, before the orchestra's final concert of the season, Bach's "Air on a G String" was performed in his honor, and his chair was left empty. Lanza held the title of assistant principal second violinist, and could prominently be seen playing with youthful excitement.

Elizabeth Taylor, hospitalized for two weeks with pneumonia, has now been placed in an intensive care unit and attached to a ventilator to help her breathe. Hospital officials described her condition late yesterday as stabilizing after a lung biopsy to determine the cause of the pneumonia. Analysis of the tissue sample was expected to take until Thursday, said her spokeswoman, Chen Sam. The 58-year-old actress, who won best-actress Oscars for "Butterfield 8" and "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf," is hospitalized in the intensive care unit at St. John's Hospital and Health Center in Santa Monica.

A Philadelphia firefighter awaiting a city-funded, $130,000 liver transplant at a Pittsburgh hospital has developed pneumonia and cannot be considered for a transplant until his condition improves, hospital officials said last night. Tyrone Appling, 33, who was flown to Pittsburgh's Presbyterian-University Hospital on Thursday, remained in critical condition in the intensive-care unit last night as doctors fought to control the pneumonia. "He's still going through some evaluation procedure, but the main thing that is the holdup right now appears to be this infection that the doctors are treating," said Chris Shirer, a spokeswoman for the hospital.

John Chaney is officially sick of the way his Temple Owls have started the season. Yesterday, Chaney was admitted to Temple University Hospital with what a university spokesman called "a small case of pneumonia. " According to Temple spokesman Chet Zukowski, Chaney felt weary at the team's practice yesterday. The trainer persuaded him to go the emergency room, where the diagnosis was made and it was decided to put Temple's coach on intravenous fluids and keep him overnight.

A Philadelphia firefighter who needs a liver transplant has developed pnemonia and can't undergo the transplant until the infection clears up, according to officials at Pittsburgh's Presbyterian-University Hospital. Tyrone Appling, 33, of West Oak Lane, was listed in critical condition at the hospital, said Peggy Stoeff, a hospital nursing supervisor. Stoeff said doctors were uncertain how long it will take for the pneumonia to clear up. No decision has been made on whether Appling will be given priority over other liver-transplant candidates.

Merle Haggard, 62, has canceled his August tour dates after contracting pneumonia, his booking agent said last week. The country star is under doctor's orders to rest for two to three weeks. Haggard is at his home in Palo Cedro, Calif., and taking antibiotics. "He's exhausted," the agent said. "He's been touring nonstop and recording three albums whenever he gets a break. " Actor Jim Nabors, 69, is coming back nicely from a minor stroke suffered in late June, his assistant said last week in Honolulu.

The "galloping" bacterial pneumonia that killed Muppets creator Jim Henson last week can be controlled - but only if a person recognizes that a mild fever and cough suddenly has become much worse. Five symptoms can signal the onset of bacterial pneumonia, a condition that can be life-threatening, according to Dr. Paul Epstein, chief of Graduate Hospital's pulmonary division. "If a person with a low-level virus suddenly develops high fever and chill, a cough with phlegm, or phlegm mixed with blood, or chest pain, or shortness of breath, these five things should tip you off that you need to see a doctor immediately.

The 18-month-old daughter of members of a fundamentalist church, where five children died in a measles epidemic last March, died yesterday of pneumonia and a blood infection for which she apparently had received no medical treatment. "It's an enormously frustrating problem to have children die of preventable cause," said city Health Commissioner Dr. Robert Ross. "It's very frustrating from a medical point of view. " But, Ross said, it was unlikely the matter would be referred to the district attorney's office for possible prosecution because "the family has a constitutional right to exercise their religious beliefs.

At first, there were fears that Steve Bedrosian had had a heart attack. Then it was believed that he had suffered a pulled muscle in his side. But when the Phillies' ace reliever continued to have discomfort in his chest, club physician Phillip Marone grew uneasy about his diagnosis. And yesterday, Marone's doubts were confirmed. New examinations and X-rays revealed that Bedrosian is suffering from walking pneumonia and pleurisy. Marone believes the condition will clear up within a week.

Eagles defensive tackle Mike Patterson was placed on the non-football illness list on Wednesday so the Eagles could promote fullback/tight end Emil Igwenagu from the practice squad. Patterson contracted pneumonia last week and was hospitalized. His agent said that he planned to file a grievance through the NFL Players Association. "This is not how you treat people if you're a winning organization," Peter Schaffer said. Patterson will lose about $150,000 in salary, according to Schaffer.

Eagles defensive tackle Mike Patterson was hospitalized Thursday with viral pneumonia and remained in the hospital on Friday, the team said. Trainer Rick Burkholder said Patterson was "doing fine" and was stable while the team awaited test results. Patterson has been ruled out for Sunday's game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and will not travel with the team. The illness is not related to the arteriovenous malformation in Patterson's brain that affected him last season and required surgery, the team said.

REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL candidate Rick Santorum said yesterday that his daughter, Bella, remained in the hospital with pneumonia but was recovering after a rough 36 hours. Santorum spoke with Florida supporters by telephone from 3-year-old Bella's room and said he hopes that she can go home in the next few days. She was in a local hospital in Virginia, according to the candidate, correcting his campaign's announcement that she was admitted to Children's Hospital of Philadelphia on Saturday, according to ABC News.

WASHINGTON - Federal regulators have approved a vaccine for adults 50 and older to prevent pneumococcal disease, including the most common type of pneumonia. Friday's announcement from the Food and Drug Administration that it had approved Pfizer Inc.'s best-selling Prevnar 13 vaccine for such use was widely anticipated. The approval comes a little more than a month after a panel of federal health experts voted overwhelmingly to recommend Prevnar 13 as a safe and effective vaccine to prevent the bacterial infections in adults.

A Common Pleas Court jury is to resume deliberations Friday in the involuntary-manslaughter trial of a Rhawnhurst couple whose 2-year-old son died of pneumonia after they eschewed medical care and tried to heal him with prayer. The 12 jurors met for about 90 minutes Thursday after lawyers for Herbert Schaible, 42, and his wife, Catherine, 41, presented their only witness, the noted Pittsburgh forensic pathologist Cyril H. Wecht. The couple's son, Kent, died Jan. 24, 2009, after a two-week illness that turned out to be bacterial pneumonia.

Richie Hayward, 64, cofounder of Little Feat, an eclectic jam band that maintained a strong cult following through the decades, died Thursday at a hospital near Vancouver after complications of pneumonia. Mr. Hayward helped form Little Feat in 1969 with front man Lowell George, Bill Payne, and Roy Estrada. The band mixed a variety of genres including rock, country, jazz, and blues, and was known for songs such as "Willin'. " - AP

EVERY COUPLE of months, another medical journal publishes groundbreaking research into the benefits of drinking beer. It's good for your heart. It prevents cancer. It prolongs your life. The latest study says it builds stronger bones. Nothing new here. Beer and medicine go way back, and I'm not talking about those hair-of-the-dog remedies for curing Saturday morning hangovers. Pneumonia, friends - it's a scientific fact that lager cures pneumonia. At least, that's what Dr. Charlton R. Gulick reported in an 1886 edition of the New York Medical Journal . Describing the illness that had a patient on his deathbed, Gulick wrote: "Electricity was first used, then quinine, and then digitalis.

Albert L. Pollock, 89, of Havertown, a retired business owner, died of pneumonia Saturday at the Coatesville Veterans Affairs Medical Center. For 30 years, Mr. Pollock headed Purveyors Market Service in Philadelphia. The firm provided credit to food-distribution companies. After retiring in 1984 at 65, Mr. Pollock kept up a busy schedule, said his wife, Lucyle Landisberg Pollock. He delivered Kosher Meals on Wheels; learned Hebrew, and studied the Torah with Rabbi Abraham Levene at Lower Merion Synagogue; took creative writing courses at Temple University's Center City Campus; taught business courses at adult night school at Upper Darby High School; and led seminars on management for senior citizens at Haverford Night School.

Swayze fights pneumonia Patrick Swayze, who spoke out this week about his ongoing battle with pancreatic cancer, checked himself into a hospital yesterday with a case of pneumonia. The pneumonia is reportedly a complication of Swayze's chemotherapy treatment. The news was revealed at a press confab for the Television Critics Association in L.A., where Swayze was scheduled to join costar Travis Fimmel in presenting his new A&E drama The Beast. On Wednesday, Swayze, 56, told Barbara Walters that his struggle with cancer had been difficult: "You can bet that I'm going through hell.

A familiar face was missing in the state budget negotiations over the past few weeks. State Sen. Diane B. Allen (R., Burlington), deputy minority leader and a prominent voice on such topics as health care and education, has been sidelined since the beginning of the year with a debilitating bout of pneumonia. It forced her to miss several voting sessions, including the budget vote, June 23. Now, the former Philadelphia news anchor (on Channels 3 and 10) says she plans to ease back into a full work schedule over the summer.