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CompletedNCT05976581UP-CAPTAInUpdated Apr 14, 2026

Using Probability of Community-Acquired Pneumonia to Tailor Antimicrobials Among Inpatients

An interventional study of Electronic alert and Structured communication of test results in Pneumonia, Pneumonia, Viral and Pneumonia, Bacterial, sponsored by Jonathan Baghdadi. Completed at 2 sites in United States. Open to participants aged 18 Years and older. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-04-14.

Sponsored by Jonathan Baghdadi · Not applicable, Interventional, and Diagnostic

Phase
Not applicable
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
107
Allocation
Randomized
Ages
18 Years and older
Sex
All
01

Study summary

The goal of this prospective randomized study is to improve antibiotic use among hospitalized patients with suspected pneumonia. An alert was built into the electronic health record to guide use of diagnostic testing based on probability of bacterial pneumonia. Patients with test results suggesting viral infection will be randomized to either: (1) receive a structured communication from the antimicrobial stewardship team to de-escalate antibiotics or (2) usual care.

Read the detailed description

Low-risk patients with viral pneumonia do not benefit from and may be harmed by antibiotic therapy. In this study, an alert will appear in the electronic health record of patients undergoing molecular diagnostic testing for respiratory symptoms that provides options for diagnostic testing based on pre-test probability of bacterial infection. Patients with test results suggesting possible viral infection will be randomized to either usual care or to receive test results along with structured guidance from antimicrobial stewardship to consider discontinuing or de-escalating antibiotics. This guidance, which will include an explicit calculation of the post-test probability of bacterial infection based on considering risk factors, vital signs, symptoms, and available imaging, will be communicated to the primary care team via direct electronic message and a summary note in the patient's chart. The final decision on whether to continue antibiotic therapy will be up to the primary team. The primary outcome of interest will be in-hospital antibiotic use. Safety outcomes will include length of stay, readmissions, hospital-free days, and mortality.

02

Conditions studied

  • Pneumonia
  • Pneumonia, Viral
  • Pneumonia, Bacterial

Keywords

  • diagnostic stewardship
  • antimicrobial stewardship
03

In context

Pneumonia

2,045 studies on the registry are indexed under Pneumonia; 284 are open to participants now.

This study's enrollment of 107 is close to the median of 106 across 1,247 interventional studies indexed under Pneumonia.

Browse Pneumonia studies →

Lead sponsor

This is the only study on the registry with Jonathan Baghdadi as lead sponsor.

Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.

04

Who can participate

Ages eligible
18 Years and older
Sexes eligible
All
Accepts healthy volunteers
No

Inclusion criteria

  • Adult patients admitted to the University of Maryland Medical Center or University of Maryland Medical Center-Midtown Campus who are prescribed antibiotics for suspected community-acquired respiratory infection.
  • Protocol-based diagnostic testing supports possible viral infection, either by positive molecular test or low procalcitonin value.

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Hospitalization for >72 hours prior to protocol-based diagnostic testing.
  • Previous molecular testing for viral infection during the same hospital encounter.
  • Severely immunosuppressed, defined as having hematologic malignancy, solid organ tumor on chemotherapy, or solid organ transplant on immunosuppression
05

Study design

Phase
Not applicable
Primary purpose
Diagnostic
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention model
Parallel assignment
Masking
None (open label)
Enrollment
107 participants (actual)

Study arms

  • Experimental
    Electronic alert plus structured communication of test results

    An electronic health record alert will guide diagnostic testing for pneumonia. For patients with low or moderate probability of bacterial pneumonia, test results will be communicated to the primary team with guidance to consider discontinuing or de-escalating antibiotics.

    Behavioral: Electronic alert · Behavioral: Structured communication of test results

  • Active comparator
    Electronic alert without structured communication of test results

    An electronic health record alert will guide diagnostic testing for pneumonia. The primary care team will access and interpret test results and decide upon composition and duration of antimicrobial without external guidance.

    Behavioral: Electronic alert

Interventions

  • BehavioralElectronic alert

    An alert will appear in the electronic health record that provides options for diagnostic testing based on low, medium, or high probability of bacterial pneumonia.

  • BehavioralStructured communication of test results

    A clinical research team member will send an electronic message to the primary care team on behalf of the antimicrobial stewardship program with structured guidance to stop or de-escalate antibiotics and document these recommendations in the patient's chart.

06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Hospital antibiotic days of therapy

    The aggregate sum of days for which any amount of a specific antimicrobial agent was administered during the hospital encounter, from arrival in the emergency department or on the hospital ward until discharge.

    Time frame: Up to 90 days after randomization

Secondary outcomes

  1. Hospital length of stay

    Duration of hospitalization from admission to discharge

    Time frame: Up to 90 days after randomization

  2. In-hospital mortality

    Death or discharge to hospice during initial hospitalization for any cause

    Time frame: Up to 90 days after randomization

  3. Readmissions within 30-days of randomization

    Readmissions for any cause within 30-days of randomization

    Time frame: Within 30 days after randomization

  4. C. difficile infections in the 30-days post-randomization

    Positive test for C. difficile associated with initiation of antibiotics targeting C. difficile.

    Time frame: Within 30 days after randomization

  5. Acute kidney injury

    Defined by an elevation in creatinine of \> 0.5mg/dl or 2x baseline in a patient without previous end-stage renal disease.

    Time frame: Within 14 days of randomization

  6. Ventilator-free days in the 30-days post-randomization

    Days without a requirement for mechanical ventilation in the 30 days after randomization.

    Time frame: 30 days after randomization.

  7. Hospital-free days in the 30-days post-randomization

    Days without hospitalization in the 30 days after randomization.

    Time frame: 30 days after randomization.

  8. Antibiotic de-escalations within 72 hours after initiation

    Including narrowing, discontinuing, or converting the route of administration from intravenous to oral.

    Time frame: 3 days after randomization.

07

Study locations

2 sites
  • University of Maryland Medical Center - Midtown Campus
    Baltimore, Maryland 21201, United States
  • University of Maryland Medical Center
    Baltimore, Maryland 21201, United States
08

References and documents

Publications

  • Baghdadi JD, Harris AD, Pineles L, Al-Shanqeeti S, Palacio D, Charles DW, Heil E, Claeys KC, Bork JT, Sommerkamp S, Wilkerson RG, Godwin G, Sutherland ME, Johnson JK, Morgan DJ. Using Probability of Community-Acquired Pneumonia to Tailor Antimicrobials Among Inpatients: A Pragmatic, Randomized Trial. Clin Infect Dis. 2026 Jul 8;82(6):954-961. doi: 10.1093/cid/ciag126. PubMed 41823187 ↗

Individual participant data

Plan to share: No

09

Updates

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on Apr 14, 2026, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
10

Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT05976581
Lead sponsor
Jonathan Baghdadi
Collaborators
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Responsible party
Jonathan Baghdadi (Assistant Professor, University of Maryland, Baltimore) — Sponsor-investigator
First posted
Aug 4, 2023
Start date
Nov 1, 2023
Primary completion
Jan 10, 2025
Completion
May 31, 2025
Last update
Apr 14, 2026

Study contacts

Daniel J. Morgan, MD, MS
principal investigator · University of Maryland, Baltimore

Oversight

Data monitoring committee
No
FDA-regulated drug
No
FDA-regulated device
No
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

Not currently enrolling

This study is completed, as verified in Apr 2026. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.

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