Community-Acquired Pneumonia: Strategies for Management

Community-Acquired Pneumonia (CAP) refers to pneumonia acquired outside of hospitals or extended-care facilities, and is distinct from Nosocomial or hospital-acquired pneumonia, which is a separate disease entity. It is one of the most common respiratory infections and presents one of the major health problems today, with an incidence that ranges from eight to fifty cases per thousand individuals each year. Mortality is still very high and yet the risk factors are very well known. Many of these are related to antibiotic treatment; delay in administration, inadequacy of empiric antibiotics and lack of adherence to guidelines for treatment are all clearly associated with poor treatment outcomes. Following a description of the epidemiology and microbial etiology of ambulatory and hospitalized CAP, this book provides an in-depth review of the important new advances in therapeutics, including management of drug resistance to the three major classes of antibiotics used for treatment of CAP: β-lactams, macrolides and quinolones. All of them have advantages and disadvantages and these are put into perspective. This book highlights guideline recommendations and presents a balanced analysis to help physicians deliver the highest standard of care. In addition, the authors provide an insight into the 10% of patients who do not respond to antibiotics and could benefit from adjunctive therapies, some still under review. This volume will be welcomed by pulmonologists and all clinicians involved in managing community-acquired pneumonia.