At an isolated weather station in the central United States, a technician emerges from a small brick shed grasping a balloon. It's not just any birthday party balloon, mind you, but a massive, white sphere more than 5 feet (1.5 meters) in diameter.
Lung abscess can also be caused by the spread of other infections from the liver, abdominal cavity, or open chest wounds. Rarely, AIDS patients can develop lung abscess from Pneumocystis carinii and other organisms that take advantage of a weakened immune system. Lung abscess is usually slow to develop.
Infection of the respiratory tract by Pseudomonas aeruginosa is the major cause of morbidity and mortality in adult patients with cystic fibrosis (CF) (15). Recent advances in antimicrobial therapy against lung pathogens have dramatically contributed to increased life expectancy of CF patients.