What Is Walking Pneumonia?

Walking pneumonia is an informal term to refer to a mild type of pneumonia. People who catch it usually feel well enough to “walk around” and not have to stay in bed [R, R].

Walking pneumonia at first seems harmless, very much similar to the common cold. But unlike the common cold that’s caused by a virus, walking pneumonia is usually caused by bacteria that don’t respond to typical antibiotics (most commonly Mycoplasma pneumoniae). The symptoms, although mild, can be stubborn and difficult to treat. Rarely, these symptoms can progress and cause serious health issues [R, R].

Is Walking Pneumonia Contagious?

Walking pneumonia is a bacterial infection and people can spread it mostly by coughing or sneezing. As the symptoms are usually mild, people who have it are likely to spread the bacteria by going to public places. Small outbreaks can happen in closed collectives, such as universities, libraries, and even military bases [R, R, R].

The largest outbreak in US universities in the past 40 years happened in 2012 at the University of Georgia. It involved 83 students, half of whom were completely unaware of the outbreak when surveyed. Public health authorities emphasized how important it is for students to stay at home, seek medical help, and rest when ill instead of putting others at risk [R].

But some infections are so mild that they pass without any symptoms, leaving people unaware that they even had an infection. In about 7% of the cases, however, the infection spreads to damage the lungs or reaches the brain and causes complications [R, R, R].

Signs and Symptoms

The symptoms of walking pneumonia are similar to those of regular pneumonia, but usually much milder. Depending on the bacteria that are causing the infection, symptoms can include the following [R, R]:

• Coughing (possibly with phlegm)
• Chest pain
• Shortness of breath
• Ear pain
• Fatigue
• Fever
• Stomach pain and digestive problems
• Slowed heart rate
• Triggering or worsening of asthma

In more severe cases,

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