Childhood community-acquired pneumonia

Conclusion: New insights into the aetiology and treatment of CAP in children in recent years have influenced management and are the focus of this review. In addition to reducing diagnostic uncertainty, there is an urgent need to reduce antibiotic overuse and antimicrobial resistance in children with CAP.What is Known:• Conjugate vaccines against Streptococcus pneumoniae and Haemophilus influenzae type b have shifted the epidemiology of childhood CAP to predominantly viral pathogens and Mycoplasma pneumoniae.• Clinical, laboratory, and radiological criteria cannot reliably distinguish between bacterial and viral aetiology in children with CAP.What is New:• Test results and epidemiological data must be carefully interpreted, as no single diagnostic method applied to non-pulmonary specimens has both high sensitivity and high specificity for determining pneumonia aetiology in childhood CAP.• This review provides a simple and pragmatic management algorithm for children with CAP to aid physicians in providing optimal and safe care and reducing antibiotic prescribing.
Source: European Journal of Pediatrics - Category: Pediatrics Source Type: research