Comparison between Ceftriaxone and Sulbactam-Ampicillin as Initial Treatment of Community-Acquired Pneumonia: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Current guidelines recommend the use of ceftriaxone and sulbactam-ampicillin for the initial treatment of community-acquired pneumonia (CAP). However, there are no clear data on these guidelines. Therefore, this systematic review and meta-analysis aims to evaluate the effectiveness of ceftriaxone and sulbactam-ampicillin in the initial treatment of CAP. The Embase, Scopus, PubMed, Ichushi, and Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature databases were systematically searched from inception to July 2022. The studies included patients who received ceftriaxone or sulbactam-ampicillin as the initial antibiotic therapy for CAP. The mortality and clinical cure rates were evaluated. Of the 2152 citations identified for screening, four studies were included. Results of the pooled analysis indicated no significant differences in the mortality and clinical cure rates between patients treated with ceftriaxone and those treated with sulbactam-ampicillin (mortality, odds ratio [OR]: 1.85, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.57-5.96; clinical cure rate, OR: 1.08, 95% CI: 0.18-6.44). This study supports the guidelines for CAP treatment, though further studies are needed to obtain a deeper understanding.