Why is back pain associated with pneumonia?

First, the symptoms of walking pneumonia are mild -- usually a cough that can be frequent with little or no phlegm (also termed a dry cough), a low or absent fever (usually under 101 F), and feeling more tired after normal activities or simply have tiredness or fatigue. read more

Back pain with pneumonia is not uncommon, because your lungs are against your back and if there is fluid between your back and the chest wall you will have pain there. Also if you have a lower lobe pneumonia you can have abdominal pain and vomiting. read more

Therefore, if a person complains of back pain that worsens while breathing, chances of pneumonia cannot be ruled out. But, not all cases of back pain are caused by pneumonia. Similarly, not all cases of pneumonia cause back pain. When suffering from pneumonia, many other symptoms are also observed. read more

Pneumonia, an infection deep within the lungs, can often manifest as pain in the middle back. “It’s likely pneumonia—and not, say, a pulled muscle—if your back pain is associated with fever, difficulty breathing, and persistent cough,” explains Glenn Hardesty, D.O., emergency medicine physician at Texas Health Arlington Memorial Hospital. read more