Glossary
Pneumonia: Infection of the lungs.Thick and thin blood smears: blood from the patient is smeared over a slide thickly and thinly and a technician studies the slide under a microscope.
Circulatory collapse: failure of blood flow either to heart or to other organs, leading to shock.
Paired serum samples: Serum is the liquid part of the blood without the blood cells. Blood samples are taken in the acute phase of infection and again after 10-14 days. Depending on whether there is an increase or decrease of antibody titer, the presence or absence of an infective organism can be determined.
