Differences in etiology of pneumonias in nursing home and community patients.
Comparison of 35 elderly patients hospitalized with pneumonia acquired in nursing homes and 35 elderly patients hospitalized with community-acquired pneumonia showed that 16 (47.1%) of the nursing home patients had received previous antibiotic therapy compared with two (5.9%) of the community patients. Klebsiella pneumoniae was isolated in 14 (40%) of the nursing home patients, but in only three (8.6%) of the community patients. Staphylococcus aureus was also more frequent in nursing home patients (nine, 25.7%) compared with community patients (five, 14.3%). Persons hospitalized with nursing home-acquired pneumonia should be treated initially with antimicrobial agents active against K pneumoniae and S aureus unless the clinical picture strongly suggests otherwise.
D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D001424:Bacterial Infections / Q000150:complications* / Q000401:mortality; D006760:Hospitalization; D006801:Humans; D007711:Klebsiella pneumoniae / Q000302:isolation & purification; D009735:Nursing Homes; D011014:Pneumonia / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000209:etiology* / Q000382:microbiology; D011787:Quality of Health Care; D012306:Risk; D013211:Staphylococcus aureus / Q000302:isolation & purification