Noninfectious conditions that can mimic pneumonia in children

Anatomical considerations Drugs and chemical exposures

Prominent thymus Nitrofurantoin

Breast shadows Bleomycin

Bronchogenic cyst Cytotoxic drugs

Vascular ring Opiates

Pulmonary sequestration Radiation therapy

Congenital lobar emphysema Smoke inhalation

Atelectasis (due to a foreign body or "Vaping" (ie, use of electronic cigarette devices to
mucus plug) inhale aerosolized substances)

Aspiration of gastric contents Lipoid pneumonia

Gastroesophageal reflux Vasculitic disorders

Tracheoesophageal fistula Systemic lupus erythematosus

Cleft palate Granulomatosis with polyangiitis (Wegener)

Neuromuscular disorders Juvenile idiopathic arthritis

Chronic pulmonary disorders Others

Asthma Hypersensitivity pneumonitis

Bronchiectasis Neoplasm

Bronchopulmonary dysplasia Pulmonary edema due to heart failure

Cystic fibrosis Pulmonary infarction

Pulmonary fibrosis Acute respiratory distress syndrome

Alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency Graft-versus-host disease

Pulmonary hemosiderosis Poor inspiratory film

Alveolar proteinosis Near drowning event

Desquamative interstitial Underpenetrated film

pneumonitis

Sarcoidosis

Histiocytosis X

Data from:
 1. Klein JO. Bacterial pneumonias. In: Textbook of Pediatric Infectious Diseases, 5 th ed, Feigin RD, Cherry
JD, Demmler GJ, Kaplan SL (Eds), WB Saunders, Philadelphia 2004. p.299.
2. McIntosh K. Community-acquired pneumonia in children. N Engl J Med 2002; 346:429.
3. Gaston B. Pneumonia. Pediatr Rev 2002; 23:132.
4. Boyer KM. Nonbacterial pneumonia. In: Textbook of Pediatric Infectious Disease, 5 th ed, Feigin RD,
Cherry JD, Demmler GJ, Kaplan SL (Eds), WB Saunders, Philadelphia 2004. p.286.
5. Layden JE, Ghinai I, Pray I, et al. Pulmonary illness related to e-cigarette use in Illinois and Wisconsin -
Preliminary report. N Engl J Med 2019.

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