The American journal of emergency medicine
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Previous studies have shown that carbon monoxide, which is endogenously produced, is increased in community-acquired pneumonia (CAP). However, it has not been studied enough whether severity of pneumonia is correlated with increased carboxyhemoglobin (COHb) concentrations in CAP. The aim of this study was to determine whether endogenous carbon monoxide levels in patients with CAP were higher compared with the control group and, if so, to determine whether COHb concentrations could predict severity in CAP. ⋯ Although COHb concentrations show an increase in patients with pneumonia, it was concluded that this increase did not act as an indicator in diagnosis process or prediction of clinical severity for the physicians.