Impact of a Strategy Based on Bacterial DNA Detection to Optimize Antibiotics in Immunocompromised Patients With Hospital-acquired Pneumonia Requiring Mechanical Ventilation

RESPIRE is a randomized, unblinded, controlled study to measure the impact of a strategy based on a PCR test on the adjustment of antimicrobial therapy in immunocompromised patients suspected with ventilator-associated or hospital-acquired pneumonia (VAP/HAP) requiring mechanical ventilation (MV) in Intensive Care Unit (ICU). The gold-standard microbiological diagnostic method for pneumonia in the ICU is based on culture identification and antimicrobial susceptibility testing. Results are obtained in several days after the initiation of empiric antimicrobial therapy, exposing patients to a potential inappropriate broad-spectrum antimicrobial treatment. We aim to measure the impact of a PCR-based strategy to improve the percentage of patients with VAP or HAP receiving targeted antimicrobial therapy 24 hours after diagnosis compared to standard care