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Does Empiric Therapy for Atypical Pathogens Improve Outcomes for Patients with CAP?
Infect Dis Clin North Am. 2013 Mar;27(1):99-114
Authors: File TM, Marrie TJ
Abstract
The present controversy regarding the need to cover atypical pathogens in the empiric therapy of community-acquired pneumonia is related to several issues, including the relevance of terminology, imprecise diagnostic methods, and perceived contradictory results of published evidence. Studies evaluating the time to clinical recovery and the use of earlier endpoints for evaluation suggest that appropriate therapy provides a benefit if an atypical pathogen is a pathogen. Because recent surveillance studies suggest these pathogens are common and until there is the availability of accurate, cost-effective, and easily interpreted laboratory tests to provide the etiologic diagnosis at the time of point of care, empiric therapy of atypical pathogens is supported.
PMID: 23398868 [PubMed - in process]