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Pneumonia in pediatric patients is a common reason for hospitalization, and empiric antibiotics are initiated based on the most likely pathogens. For most children an etiologic agent is not identified. Guidelines recommend obtaining blood cultures for children with moderate to severe community-acquired pneumonia (CAP), but the usefulness of cultures is unclear.
Researchers retrospectively analyzed prospective data collected from an active surveillance study of children <18 years of age hospitalized for CAP in three children's hospitals from 2010 to 2012. Blood cultures were obtained for 91% of the 2358 enrolled children, most (93%) in the first 24 hours. Findings include the following:
Overall, 46 patients (2.2%) had a positive blood culture …