Postoperative pneumonia following cardiac surgery in non-ventilated patients versus mechanically ventilated patients: is there any difference?

Introduction: No studies have compared ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) and non-VAP following cardiac surgery (CS). The aim of this study was to assess the incidence, clinical and microbiologic features, treatment characteristics and prognosis of postoperative pneumonia following CS with a special focus on non-VAP.

Methods: This was a retrospective cohort study based on a prospectively collected database.