CLARITHROMYCIN TO PREVENT SECONDARY INFECTIONS IN PATIENTS WITH SEPSIS FOLLOWING LOWER RESPIRATORY TRACT INFECTIONS: THE CLASSIFY TRIAL

The goal of this clinical trial is to assess whether clarithromycin, given as an adjunct to standard-of-care antibiotic therapy, can reduce the risk of new infections and secondary sepsis in adult patients hospitalized with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP), sepsis, and sepsis-induced immunoparalysis (SII). The primary objective is to evaluate the effect of clarithromycin on the incidence of new infection, including worsening or recurrence of the initial CAP episode, new infections at other sites, and secondary sepsis during the 28-day follow-up period. Secondary objectives are to investigate the impact of clarithromycin on mortality, sepsis response, type of secondary infection, time to antimicrobial escalation, hospital readmission, quality of life, cost-effectiveness, and biomarkers of sepsis-induced immunoparalysis. Researchers will compare clarithromycin plus standard-of-care antibiotic therapy to placebo plus standard-of-care antibiotic therapy. Participants will: * Receive clarithromycin or placebo, administered orally or intravenously, in addition to standard-of-care antibiotic therapy for up to 7 days. * Be evaluated during treatment and follow-up through Day 28, with additional assessment of mortality, hospital readmission, and health status through Day 90.