An INTERVIEW with DR. BRYAN CEPEDOZA
about FLU and PNEUMONIA VACCINES
conducted by the Managing Editor of The Bohol Tribune
(Part 5 – final part)
Q. A friend was recently subjected to surgery. Why is there a need to check the lungs and heart before the surgery? Is that necessary?
A. The lungs and heart are vital organs and there is a need to check the function of the heart and lungs as the surgery is stressful to the heart and lungs. It is best to check these organs before surgery so that if there are abnormalities, they can be corrected before surgery.
Q. If a person had pneumonia before, will it recur?
A. Pneumonia can recur as there are a lot of causes that may lead to pneumonia. We may not have immunity to some contagions that may cause pneumonia.
There are thousands that may cause pneumonia and if one recovers from one kind of contagion, one may get infected with the same contagion because we don’t have an immunity for that particular contagion.
Q. Is the young more susceptible to pneumonia than the adult ?
A. This is called the extreme of ages, where the extremely young are susceptible as well as the extremely old. Teenagers and young adults are not susceptible but can be infected and the symptoms are mild.
The newborns are susceptible as well as 65 years old and above, as the newborn’s immune system is still developing and the immune system of the elderly is no longer efficient.
Q. Why is there a need to have specialists?
A. Medicine is broad and if one doctor will be attending, the doctor’s focus will be spread thinly.
The movement is toward specialization and there could be a time one doctor could be the specialist for the right lung and another doctor is a specialist for the left lung.
The specialist is more focused.
Q. Will not having a lot of specialists cause confusion?
A. It will not cause confusion as the doctors will be discussing among themselves on what will be the right course of action on a patient. The charts will be reviewed every day.
Q. Can pneumonia heal on its own?
A. It is possible that pneumonia will heal on its own but it’s risky. There is a need to help the immune system to hasten the recovery.
Q. Can you catch pneumonia from another person?
A. Yes as the contagion is spread via respiratory spray as one with flu coughs and inhales the spray one can get infected. This is the same with pneumonia. The infection may spread through droplet spray.
Q. What is the difference between the cough of a person with tuberculosis of the lungs and the cough of someone with pneumonia?
A. Cough as a symptom is the same in all kinds of diseases. There is no difference between the cough of a TB patient, pneumonia patient, and a heart failure patient. There is a need to look for other criteria. If a person is coughing, it might be heart failure. If there is edema or history of hypertension or cardiomegaly, the cough may be related to the heart. If the xray shows that there is pneumonia, the cough is a symptom of pneumonia or upon examining the phlegm, it shows tuberculosis then the cough is caused by TB. To rely on cough for diagnosis, is not possible. There is a need to ask more questions and for the patient to have more lab tests to arrive on the right diagnosis.
Q. Why do doctors need professional growth or a need to study further?
A. The doctor needs to study everyday as a doctor who is not studying will be left behind by the trends. If one refuses to study then they should not become doctors.
Q. Can Google help diagnose?
A. No. Google only provides brief answers and it may bring anxiety to patients