Pulmonology

CRB-65 Severity Score for Community-Acquired Pneumonia

Evaluates CRB-65 score (0–4) without blood urea to determine home treatment vs urgent hospital admission.

Enlarge

Parameters

CRB-65 Severity Score for Community-Acquired Pneumonia Result

Formula

CRB-65 Score = Confusion (1) + Resp Rate ≥30 (1) + BP <90/<60 (1) + Age ≥65 (1)
Range: 0 to 4 points (No blood urea laboratory testing required)

Clinical Pearls

Empowers outpatient and primary care general practitioners to make rapid, evidence-based triage decisions without waiting for laboratory blood draws.

Limitations

In emergency departments with rapid blood laboratories, CURB-65 (which includes Blood Urea Nitrogen) or PSI (PORT) provides higher discriminatory precision.