Context

Respiratory tract infections and pneumonia in particular are the third leading cause of death worldwide. The prognosis of community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) dramatically improved with the availability of antibiotics; however, it still carries a high risk for long-term morbidity and mortality, which has not changed over the past few decades. Systemic corticosteroids have anti-inflammatory effects that attenuate the inflammatory process in CAP which can potentially be harmful. Adjunct treatment with corticosteroids has been discussed since the 1950s and many studies were conducted to investigate the efficacy of corticosteroids in CAP. However, so far, no adjunct therapy is recommended.1