Hospital-Acquired Pneumonia in Patients Undergoing Coronary Artery Bypass Graft; Comparison of the Center for Disease Control Clinical Criteria With Physicians’ Judgment

Abstract

Background: Following coronary artery bypass graft (CABG), patients are at high risk (3.2%-8.3%) for developing hospital-acquired pneumonia (HAP) with mortality rate of 24% to 50%. Some of routine features in patients undergoing CABG are similar to clinical criteria of Center of Disease Control (CDC) for diagnosis of pneumonia. This may lead to over-diagnosis of pneumonia in these patients.