Adult Outpatients With Acute Cough Due to Suspected Pneumonia or Influenza: CHEST Guideline and Expert Panel Report

Abstract

Background: Patients commonly present to primary care services with upper and lower respiratory tract infections, and guidelines to help physicians investigate and treat acute cough due to suspected pneumonia and influenza are needed. Methods: A systematic search was carried out with eight patient, intervention, comparison, outcome questions related to acute cough due to suspected pneumonia or influenza. Results: There was a lack of randomized controlled trials in the setting of outpatients presenting with acute cough due to suspected pneumonia or influenza who were not hospitalized. Both clinical suggestions and research recommendations were made on the evidence available and CHEST Expert C..