On November 12, coinciding with World Pneumonia Day, the PneumoLight global campaign is launched, a project promoted by Dr. Catia Cilloniz, a researcher at the Hospital Clínic of Barcelona, with the collaboration of Pfizer and the support of the Every Breath Counts Coalition, from the University of Barcelona (UB), the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGLOBAL), the Forum of International Respiratory Societies (FIRS), and the Spanish Society for Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology (SEIMC), among others. To give visibility to pneumonia, a total of 232 buildings and monuments from 48 different countries will be illuminated in blue between 9:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m.

This campaign is launched with the aim of raising awareness and giving visibility to this disease caused by a lung infection, which causes inflammation and accumulation of fluid usually caused by germs, such as bacteria, viruses, and fungi1. Pneumonia is the single biggest infectious killer of adults and children – claiming the lives of 2.5 million, including 672,000 children, in 20192. This year World Pneumonia Day will be held during a global pandemic that is dramatically increasing pneumonia from COVID-19 and other causes. COVID-19 could add 1.9 million to the death toll this year. This could increase ‘all-cause’ pneumonia deaths by more than 75%. No other infection causes this burden of death. Disruptions to healthcare services are estimated to cause up to an additional 2.3 million child deaths – 35% from pneumonia and newborn sepsis.

Although pneumonia is a high incidence disease3 known to the public, the risk of contracting it is often ignored. Children under 5 years old4, people over 60-65 years old and those who previously had chronic pathologies such as diabetes, heart failure, lung disease5, are at greatest risk. Thus, it is important, especially in the context of a pandemic, to raise awareness and educate the public about this disease, which can cause serious consequences6 for those who suffer from it.

Global awareness day

Within this campaign, there will be a global conference promoted by the Hospital Clínic, which counts with the participation of leading experts in pneumonia research. The conference can be accessed through the following link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xjCumtkV1Es&feature=youtu.be&ab_channel=AulaClinic. Dr. Catia Cillóniz, with the support of the Every Breath Counts Coalition, has organized this conference in which various topics related to pneumonia will be discussed: the general scenario of this disease, the importance of an early diagnosis and early appropriate treatment, as well as its impact and approach during the coronavirus pandemic.

“The misperceptions about pneumonia are alarming. Society knows little about this disease, and even less about its impact on general health, and there is a widespread belief that pneumonia affects only specific subgroups of susceptible people”, says Dr. Catia Cilloniz. “It is important that researchers share their knowledge and advances in this area using an informative approach so that the society is aware of the public health problem posed by pneumonia”, she concludes.

In this global conference will participate Dr. Josep M. Campistol, general director of the Hospital Clínic, Dr. Antoni Trilla, head of the Epidemiology Service of the Clinic and dean of the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences of the UB, and Dr. Antoni Torres, pulmonologist at the Clinic and head of the applied research group in respiratory infections and critically ill patients at IDIBAPS. In addition, representatives of different entities such as UNICEF, the World Health Organization, Save the Children, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, among other associations and scientific societies from different parts of the world will participate.