Introducción

Abstract

Community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) is a major public health problem associated with high morbidity and mortality. The latest Chilean CAP guidelines were published in 2005 and in light of new evidence, it is necessary to update them. Material and methods: The “Sociedad Chilena de Enferme­dades Respiratorias”, “Sociedad Chilena de Infectología”, and “Sociedad Chilena de Medicina Fami­liar” convened a working group to update the Chilean CAP guidelines. The panel consisted of a total of ten Chilean experts, one expert from the United States, and one clinical epidemiologist. Ten clinical questions were chosen by consensus among the experts. Systematic reviews of literature searches were performed in various databases. The quality of the evidence was assessed using the GRADE system (an acronym for Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation). Results: The recommendations were the result of the work of three scientific societies and addressed questions related to epidemiology, etiology, diagnosis, treatment, prognosis, and prevention of CAP. Conclusions: This national guidelines provides evidence-based clinical practice recommendations for the management of CAP in immunocompetent adults, following the GRADE system.