Arch Intern Med
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Multicenter Study
Guideline-concordant therapy and reduced mortality and length of stay in adults with community-acquired pneumonia: playing by the rules.
Community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) is a major cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Clinical practice guidelines for empirical CAP treatment, formulated jointly by the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) and American Thoracic Society (ATS), remain controversial and inconsistently applied. We evaluated the impact of guideline-concordant therapy on in-hospital survival and other outcomes using a large database including adults treated for CAP in both community and tertiary care hospitals. ⋯ Guideline-concordant therapy for CAP is associated with improved health outcomes and diminished resource use in adults. The mechanisms underlying this finding remain speculative and warrant further study, but our findings nonetheless support compliance with CAP clinical practice guidelines as a benchmark of quality of care.