Routine blood cultures may not be necessary for most children hospitalized with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP), researchers conclude based on a large multicenter cross-sectional study.
The study found that the rate of bacteremia is “very low” among children hospitalized with CAP, first author Dr. Mark Neuman, from Boston Children’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School, told Reuters Health by email. And when bacteremia is present, “a majority of pathogens are susceptible to narrow-spectrum antibiotics, such as penicillin,” he said.
These findings suggest that among children without chronic conditions hospitalized with CAP, the routine performance of blood cultures has limited value “because the results would rarely require changes from guideline-recommended, empirical antibiotic therapy,” the study authors write.
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