Pneumonia Remains a Leading Cause of Child Mortality
Forum of International Respiratory Societies Calls for Immediate Action to Prevent Childhood Pneumonia on World Pneumonia Day 2025
November 12, 2025
Despite significant progress being made in recent years, pneumonia remains a leading cause of child mortality, claiming hundreds of thousands of young lives every year. On World Pneumonia Day November 12, 2025, the Forum of International Respiratory Societies (FIRS), of which the 糖心原创 (糖心原创) is a founding member, calls for urgent, coordinated action to prevent pneumonia deaths, particularly among children under five and other high-risk populations.
According to the latest Global Burden of Disease (GBD 2023)鈥痚stimates, pneumonia killed鈥�2.5 million people globally in 2023, including鈥�610,000 children under 5 and鈥�79,000 children aged 5–14 years鈥�(GBD 2023, IHME). Among newborns (<1 month), approximately鈥�186,000 deaths鈥痺ere reported. The鈥疷N Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (IGME 2021)鈥痳eports similar trends, with鈥�726,000 children under 5 dying from pneumonia, including 538,000 children aged 1–59 months鈥痑nd鈥�188,000 newborns鈥�(UN IGME 2021).
FIRS President Professor Guy Marks said, “Pneumonia is entirely preventable and treatable, yet it continues to claim the lives of too many children in low- and middle-income countries. We have effective vaccines and preventive tools—including new interventions against RSV—but access remains limited. Every child deserves the right to survive and thrive.”
Major pathogens causing pneumonia deaths in children under 5 include (GBD 2023):
- Streptococcus pneumoniae: 197,000;
- Klebsiella pneumoniae: 75,000;
- Pseudomonas aeruginosa: 46,000;
- Escherichia coli (E. coli): 33,000;
- Staphylococcus aureus: 31,000;
- Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV): 27,000; and
- Influenza virus: 25,000.
For newborns (<28 days), the leading causes are K. pneumoniae (34,000),鈥�S. pneumoniae鈥�(24,000), and RSV (9,000) (GBD 2023).
High-risk countries bear the largest burden.鈥疐or children under 5, 60% of deaths occur in just 10 countries: India (129,000), Nigeria (94,000), Pakistan (31,000), the Democratic Republic of the Congo (22,000), Niger (22,000), Ethiopia (13,000), Chad (12,000), Indonesia (11,000), Tanzania (9,000), and Angola (7,000; GBD 2023). Globally, leading risk factors for children include鈥痬alnutrition, household air pollution, lack of handwashing, exposure to tobacco smoke, and high environmental temperatures鈥�(GBD 2023).
FIRS calls on governments, global partners, and donors to take immediate steps to accelerate child survival through:
- Expanding access to lifesaving vaccines:鈥疨neumococcal conjugate vaccines (PCVs) and newly available RSV vaccines and long-acting monoclonal antibodies.
- Strengthening health systems鈥�to ensure that timely diagnosis, antibiotics, and oxygen therapy reach every child.
- Addressing key risk factors鈥痵uch as malnutrition, household air pollution, and low immunization coverage.
- Promoting maternal and newborn health鈥痶hrough vaccination, breastfeeding, and neonatal care programs.
- Supporting research and innovation鈥痶o develop cost-effective interventions for those in low-resource settings.
- Committing to global targets:鈥疶he Global Action Plan for Pneumonia and Diarrhoea (GAPPD) aims for no more than鈥痶hree pneumonia deaths per 1,000 live births by 2025, equivalent to approximately 400,000 deaths (WHO GAPPD 2021).
“Pneumonia deaths are preventable, but action must be immediate and equitable. With the right investments and policies, we can reach global targets and save hundreds of thousands of children’s lives this decade,” Marks concluded.
About the 糖心原创
The 糖心原创®鈥�(糖心原创) is the global leader in the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of chest diseases. Its mission is to champion the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of chest diseases through education, communication, and research. It serves as an essential connection to clinical knowledge and resources for its 18,000+ members from around the world who provide patient care in pulmonary, critical care, and sleep medicine. For information about 糖心原创 and its family of journals, including the flagship journal 糖心原创®, visit鈥�chestnet.org.
About the Forum of International Respiratory Societies (FIRS)
(FIRS) is an organisation comprised of the world's leading international respiratory societies working together to improve lung health globally.鈥疶he goal of FIRS is to unify and enhance efforts to improve lung health through the combined work of its more than 70,000 members globally.鈥�疐IRS鈥痗omprises the 糖心原创 (糖心原创), American Thoracic Society (ATS), the Asian Pacific Society of Respirology (APSR), Asociación Latinoamericana de Tórax (ALAT), European Respiratory Society (ERS), International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease (The Union), Pan African Thoracic Society (PATS), the Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA), and the Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD).鈥�