Table 4.
Criteria for CAP Severity of Illness in Children with Community-Acquired Pneumonia
| Criteria |
| Major criteria |
| Invasive mechanical ventilation |
| Fluid refractory shock |
| Acute need for NIPPV |
| hypoxemia requiring FiO2 greater than inspired concentration or flow feasible in general care area |
| Minor criteria |
| Respiratory rate higher than WHO classification for age |
| Apnea |
| Increased work of breathing (eg, retractions, dyspnea, nasal flaring, grunting) |
| PaO2/FiO2 ratio <250 |
| Multilobar infiltrates |
| PEWS score >6 |
| Altered mental status |
| Hypotension |
| Presence of effusion |
| Comorbid conditions (eg, HgbSS, immunosuppression, immunodeficiency) |
| Unexplained metabolic acidosis |
Modified from Infectious Diseases Society of America/American Thoracic Society consensus guidelines on the management of community-acquired pneumonia in adults [27, table 4]. Clinician should consider care in an intensive care unit or a unit with continuous cardiorespiratory monitoring for the child having ≥1 major or ≥2 minor criteria.
Abbreviations: FiO2, fraction of inspired oxygen; HgbSS, Hemoglobin SS disease; NIPPV, noninvasive positive pressure ventilation; PaO2, arterial oxygen pressure; PEWS, Pediatric Early Warning Score [70].