"‘Tis the season… for respiratory illnesses and sick kids. It’s never fun when our little ones are sick, especially as we approach the holiday season. And there’s one type of infection that’s particularly been on the rise. It’s called ‘walking pneumonia’ and, according to the CDC, cases have steadily been rising since last spring.
The CDC is also reporting that while walking pneumonia has historically affected more school-aged children, cases are also on the rise in young children aged 2-4.
As a parent of two young children, hearing that there’s a surge in respiratory illness going around made me panic slightly. I typically associate pneumonia with what can be a devastating illness for an older person to contract. I have also seen several posts in my local Facebook mom groups about kids getting walking pneumonia, so I wanted to get to the bottom of how worried I should be about the increasing infection rate.
But deep breath—the good news is that most kids won’t need medical attention to resolve walking pneumonia and that antibiotics can typically clear it up if they do need a doctor’s visit.
Read on to hear what Dr. Krupa Playforth, pediatrician and The Pediatrician Mom on Instagram, and Dr. Wassim M. Ballan, Divisional Chief of Pediatric Infectious Diseases and pediatrician at Phoenix Children’s Hospital, have to say about why it’s on the rise, how to diagnose and treat it, and how to try to prevent walking pneumonia in your kids.
Editor’s Note: Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding the health of your child. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read in this article.
Krupa Playforth, M.D.
Dr. Krupa Playforth is a board-certified pediatrician and mother of three whose mission is to create a safe space with practical, educational content for parents at The Pediatrician Mom.
Wassim M. Ballan, MD
Wassim Ballan, MD, is a pediatrician specializing in pediatric infectious diseases. Dr. Ballan serves as the division chief of Infectious Diseases and also medical director of the Antimicrobial Stewardship Program and associate director of the Infection Prevention Program.
What is walking pneumonia?
A bacteria called mycoplasma is to blame for walking pneumonia. While pneumonia generally refers to any infection that causes inflammation in the lungs, Dr. Ballan explains, mycoplasma causes a mild form of pneumonia, which is how walking pneumonia gets its name.
“It’s a mild type of pneumonia,” he says. “So patients are not bedridden, for example. They’re walking around with symptoms of pneumonia, and that’s where the word walking pneumonia came from.”
Unfortunately, walking pneumonia can spread quickly because people who are infected often aren’t super sick, which means they’re out and about and likely to pass the virus on to others. Like many other respiratory viruses (like COVID and RSV), it’s spread through airborne droplets like coughing or sneezing.
That means that often someone will walk around for a while spreading mycoplasma without realizing that they’re sick.
“It’s hard to distinguish [walking pneumonia] from any other run-of-the-mill viral cough, and patients may or may not have fever, which means they often continue to expose others they are in close contact with,” Dr. Playforth mentioned in a recent Instagram post. “If you have a cough or other upper respiratory symptoms, you don’t necessarily know exactly what the cause is—and at times, we do see that people can get infected with both mycoplasma and a viral infection,” Dr. Playforth added.
Walking pneumonia symptoms
Dr. Playforth says the most common scenario that tips her off that a kid might have walking pneumonia is if they’ve had a persistent hacking cough for weeks that just isn’t getting better. Other symptoms, she says, can include things like a low-grade fever, low energy, and shortness of breath.
When should kids see a doctor?
Both Dr. Playforth and Dr. Ballan stress that you should trust your gut and make an appointment with your doctor if you’re worried about any of your child’s symptoms, and that if your child isn’t improving, take them in.
“If a cough goes on longer than seven to 10 days without improvement, or if it is associated with other symptoms like an ongoing fever, or a fever that goes away and then comes back, dehydration, difficulty breathing, extreme fatigue, or really anything else that seems amiss, they should be seen,” says Dr. Playforth.
“Kids with asthma and other respiratory conditions are at higher risk for severe mycoplasma. It’s important to be especially thoughtful about having children with underlying respiratory issues checked if parents have concerns,” says Dr. Playforth. She also says that if your child has any red flags associated with their breathing, to call your doctor ASAP.
Diagnosing walking pneumonia
To see if they have walking pneumonia, your doctor can give your child a PCR nasal swab, but it isn’t always great at catching whether mycoplasma is present if it has already traveled down to the lungs, says Dr. Ballan. More than likely, your doctor will diagnose whether your child has walking pneumonia based on an exam and how long they’ve had symptoms, but occasionally they might use a chest x-ray to help diagnose, too.
Treatment for walking pneumonia
Walking pneumonia can be treated with antibiotics if needed, but the good news is that most kids won’t need to take them, says Dr. Ballan. If your child is prescribed antibiotics, Dr. Playforth says that most kids start feeling better within a couple of days with antibiotics, but does warn that their cough may still linger.
Home remedies like using a humidifier or nebulizer, like this one from Frida Baby, may help break up congestion and provide relief. Dr. Playforth demonstrated how to use a nebulizer recently, and while she mentioned that data is mixed on how effective they can be, her patients seem to benefit from it. She also mentions that you’ll need to make sure you use sterile saline in the nebulizer and to talk to your doctor before using it.
How to prevent the spread
“Whether someone has cold symptoms or pneumonia symptoms, we always advise them to put a mask on if they have to be with other people,” Dr. Ballan says about how to limit the spread of mycoplasma. “Washing hands basically breaks the transmission of a lot of the respiratory pathogens,” he adds.
Dr. Playforth notes that while it’s unclear how long someone with mycoplasma is contagious, they’re less likely to be contagious “about two weeks after the start of symptoms,” so as with anytime you think your child is sick, trying to limit interaction with others can also help prevent it from spreading.
Yes, cases of walking pneumonia are on the rise, even with younger children. And yes, the word pneumonia can sound scary. But the good news is that for the vast majority of kids who get walking pneumonia, it will resolve on its own. Some will need antibiotics to treat the infection, while an even smaller number will have serious complications.
Be cognizant of your child’s symptoms, and if you think they should be checked out, call your pediatrician, but know that walking pneumonia generally won’t ruin the holidays.
Elliott Harrell, Contributing Writer
Elliott is a mom of two little girls and is based in Raleigh, NC. She spends her days running a sales team and doing laundry and her nights writing about the things that she loves. She’s passionate about all things motherhood and women’s health. When she’s not working, writing or parenting you can find her trying a new restaurant in town or working on her latest needlepoint project.