The analysis of effectiveness appears to have been conducted in an intention to treat basis. The primary health outcomes were:
improvement in signs and symptoms of pneumonia;
fever clearance time, defined as the time from the start of treatment until the auxiliary temperature fell below 37.5 degrees C and remained below that level for 48 hours;
the length of hospital stay;
the duration of IV antibiotic usage in the ward, defined as the time taken to switch from IV to oral antibiotic; and
antibiotic prescribed on discharge.
There was a significant difference between the groups in terms of the baseline sodium and potassium levels, (p<0.05). It was unclear whether there was any adjustment for confounding factors. The groups were shown to be comparable in terms of their age and weight on admission.