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Hi all hope you use my new Blog and help each other and maybe have some fun:)

when u sign up for a blog, how the heck do u use it. do u have to have a website in order to have a blog?

Killer Pneumonia on the Rise

My father just got out of the hospital with his third case of pneumonia in 18 months. Fortunately we caught it early and he was released in just a couple of days. Apparently, my father is not the only one who is falling victim to this all-too-common illness. A recently released study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) showed a 20% increase in hospitalizations for pneumonia among people aged 65 to 84 and a two-fold increase among people 85 and older in the years from 1988 to 1990 to 2000 to 2002.

Pneumonia is one of the top 10 causes of death in the US, in part because it often develops as a complication of other diseases. The percentage of patients hospitalized for pneumonia who also had a chronic disease -- cardiac disease, pulmonary disease or diabetes -- rose from 66% to 77%. Given the huge number of Americans nearing their mid-60s and that there are many who suffer from chronic disease, the need to take preventive measures against pneumonia has become more pressing
than ever.

With this in mind, I called William Schaffner, MD, professor and chair of the department of preventive medicine at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in Nashville, TN. He explains that pneumonia is actually a catchall term that describes an infection of the lungs and that a number of microorganisms including viruses and bacteria can cause it. The main reason for the rise in cases of pneumonia, he says, is simply the aging population and the concomitant increase of disease, frailty and weakening of the immune system. But age doesn't have to mean becoming a victim to pneumonia, as Dr. Schaffner makes clear with his advice about how to
avoid it.

VACCINATIONS

Anyone with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), the umbrella term for chronic bronchitis, emphysema and some forms of asthma, should pay special attention, he says. The reason: The health of the lungs is already compromised, making them particularly

chantelle....I got mine at Braenet.You don't have to have a website