Diagnosing acute lower respiratory tract infections in out-of-hours services during the COVID-19 pandemic.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Acute lower respiratory tract infections (LRTIs) commonly lead people to seek out-of-hours primary care. Symptoms of lower respiratory tract infections overlap, and access to definite diagnostic tools is lacking in most out-of-hours settings. Distinguishing between different LRTIs is vital to ensure appropriate antibiotic prescribing. The study aimed to identify which clinical factors have guided out-of-hours physicians in distinguishing LRTIs in the late phase of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods

Out-of-hours physicians from France, Greece, Lithuania, Poland, and Spain registered pre-defined clinical information about all cases suspected of an RTI on an A4-paper Audit Project Odense chart from January to March 2022. Two multivariable logistic regressions were perfor

SUBMITTER: Lindberg BH 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12312447 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature