Creating a score to assess the severity of pneumonia in children
Official title: Derivation and Validation of the Pediatric Community-Acquired Pneumonia Severity (PedCAPS) Score
Funded at Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago · NIH-11035056 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This study is working on a new scoring system to help doctors understand how serious pneumonia is in kids, so they can make better choices about treatment and whether a child needs to stay in the hospital.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Chicago, United States) |
| Project start | February 1, 2023 |
| Project end | January 31, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $1,435,329 |
| NIH project number | 5R01HL163692-03 |
| Project ID | NIH-11035056 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates for this research are children aged 0 to 18 years who present with symptoms of community-acquired pneumonia.
✕Less likely to help
Patients with pneumonia caused by non-community-acquired factors or those outside the age range of 0 to 18 years may not benefit from this research.
What this research studies
This research aims to develop and validate a scoring system to evaluate the severity of community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) in children. By analyzing data from multiple pediatric emergency departments, the study seeks to create a reliable tool that can help healthcare providers make better decisions regarding treatment and hospitalization for children with CAP. The approach includes examining clinical variables and biomarkers to improve risk stratification and ensure that children receive appropriate care based on their individual risk levels.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this research could lead to more accurate assessments of pneumonia severity in children, resulting in better-targeted treatments and reduced unnecessary hospitalizations.
How similar studies have gone: Previous research in adults has shown that risk prediction tools for pneumonia can significantly improve patient outcomes, suggesting that similar approaches may be effective in children.
Where this research is happening
-
Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago
Chicago, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Florin, Todd Adam — Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago
- Study coordinator: Florin, Todd Adam
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
-
Azithromycin vs doxycycline with beta-lactam in hospitalized adults with pneumonia
In hospitalized adults with community-acquired pneumonia, this study will compare two antibiotic combinations to see which works better and is safer.
-
Combined immunomodulatory effect of macrolides and corticosteroids in hospitalized CAP patients
This study looks at whether adding macrolide antibiotics to steroids helps or harms people hospitalized with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP).
-
Blocking ANGPTL4 to help people with severe community-acquired pneumonia
This project will test whether blocking the blood protein ANGPTL4 helps adults hospitalized with severe community-acquired pneumonia recover faster and survive more often.
-
Pediatric pneumonia severity score (PedCAPS)
This project will create and check a simple score to predict how serious pneumonia will be in children who come to the emergency room.
-
Ketogenic diet to help muscle in older adults with pneumonia
A small trial will test if a short 10-day ketogenic (low carb, high fat) feeding helps preserve muscle and speed recovery in people 65 and older hospitalized with pneumonia.
-
Using systems biology to understand severe community-acquired pneumonia
This project analyzes patients' lung and blood samples with advanced lab tests and computer models to find biological patterns that can help guide treatment for people with severe pneumonia, including COVID-related cases.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.