Guideline for Antibiotic Use in Adults with Community-acquired Pneumonia

Lee, Mi Suk; Oh, Jee Youn; Kang, Cheol-In; Kim, Eu Suk; Park, Sunghoon; Rhee, Chin Kook; Jung, Ji Ye; Jo, Kyung-Wook; Heo, Eun Young; Park, Dong-Ah; Suh, Gee Young; Kiem, Sungmin

When treating outpatients with community-acquired pneumonia of low severity, tests are selectively performed according to age, underlying diseases, severity markers, epidemiological factors, and current history of antibiotic use. Sputum gram smear and culture may be performed when antibiotic-resistant bacteria or bacteria that are difficult to treat with common empirical antibiotics are suspected. If tuberculosis is suspected based on clinical or radiographic findings, a sputum stain and tuberculosis test are performed. It is also recommended to perform diagnostic tests when Legionella infection or influenza are suspected based on clinical and epidemiological findings.