Treatment of Community‐Acquired Pneumonia Down Under versus the United States: Is It Really That Different?

pirical in nature rather than directed against a specific pathogen. In an attempt to address this problem and to optimize the care of patients with CAP, a number of societies around the world have developed guidelines for the treatment of CAP. Beyond the immediate and obvious benefit of providing physicians with an approach to the initial treatment of these patients, some of the guidelines have helped to highlight the gaps and deficiencies in our knowledge about this disease, thereby helping to direct future studies. The guidelines have also codified our treatment of patients with CAP and have resulted in a reduction in mortality, length of hospital stay, and cost [3].