I have a question about ways of dealing with pneumonia. As far as I understand, the danger of pneumonia comes primarily from the buildup of fluid in the lungs causing asphyxiation.
Whenever I have a wet cough (pneumonia or not, mostly not) I find it a lot easier to cough up the fluid while lying down. Since that is the case, would it be beneficial to lie with your head in a slightly lowered position (so that gravity helps you get fluid out instead of keeping it in)?
And in severe cases of pneumonia, couldn't you keep the patient alive with a combination of a ventilator and some tubes to pump the fluid out constantly? I guess this isn't a perfect solution, or pneumonia would only kill those that are unable to get hospital care, but why is this?
