Outcomes of Health Care–Associated Pneumonia Empirically Treated with Guideline-Concordant Regimens Versus Community-Acquired Pneumonia Guideline–Concordant Regimens for Patients Admitted to Acute Care Wards from Home

Abstract

BACKGROUND The introduction of the health care–associated pneumonia (HCAP) categorization expanded recommendations for broad-spectrum empiric antibiotics to pneumonia patients presenting from the community with recent health care–system exposure. However, the efficacy of such regimens in improving clinical outcomes in these patients has not been well established. OBJECTIVE To compare the clinical outcomes of HCAP patients treated initially with HCAP guideline–concordant antibiotic regimens to those treated initially with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) guideline-concordant antibiotic regimens. METHODS This retrospective study included HCAP patients presenting from home and admitted to general medical wards. HCAP regimen patients were treated empirically with at least 1 antipseudomonal agent. All other patients were assigned to the CAP regimen group. The primary end point was clinical cure at 30 days postdischarge. Subgroup analysis was performed in patients hospitalized 1–30 days and 31–90 days before the HCAP admission. RESULTS Of 228 HCAP admissions, 122 patients received CAP regimens and 106 received HCAP regimens. The 2 groups were similar at baseline, including Pneumonia Severity Index scores. Attributable clinical cure occurred in 75.4% of CAP regimen patients and 69.8% of HCAP regimen patients (p = 0.34). Overall clinical cure occurred in 59.8% of CAP regimen patients and 54.7% of HCAP regimen patients (p = 0.44). The CAP regimen group used fewer days of intravenous antibiotics (4.39 vs 7.75, p < 0.0001) and had shorter lengths of stay (6.36 vs 8.58 days, p < 0.0001). For patients hospitalized 31–90 days earlier, clinical cure was higher in the CAP regimen group (attributable, 82.9% vs 60.0%, p = 0.0090; overall, 67.1% vs 47.5%, p = 0.044). CONCLUSIONS Compared to CAP guideline–concordant regimens, treatment of HCAP with HCAP guideline–concordant regimens did not increase clinical cure rates and was associated with lower clinical cure rates in patients hospitalized 31–90 days prior to the HCAP admission. This study suggests that broad-spectrum empiric antibiotics may not be necessary in all HCAP patient groups.