ObjectiveTo investigate the role of dynamic monitoring procalcitonin (PCT) in the comprehensive evaluation during the diagnosis and treatment of community acquired pneumonia (CAP). MethodsFour hundred and sixty-eight patients with CAP were randomly assigned to a PCT-guided group (the research group) and a standard guideline group (the control group). The clinical symptoms,CURB-65 grade,blood leucocyte count and classification,and C-reactive protein (CRP)were compared between two groups. The PCT-guided application time of antibiotics,the hospitalization time,chest CT examination rate,the cure or the improvement rate were also estimated and commpared. ResultsThe hospitalization time [(9.6±1.7)days vs. (10.9±1.6)days],hospitalization cost [(6 957.11±1 009.46) yuan vs. (8 011.35±1 049.77) yuan],chest CT examination rate (56.96% vs. 89.40%),the application time of antibiotics [(16.5±2.3)days vs. (20.0±1.2)days],and the rate of required antibiotics upgrade (6.96% vs. 11.06%) in the research group were all significantly lower than the control group (P<0.05). There was no significant difference between two groups in the ratio of the adverse reaction of antibiotics (14.78% vs. 15.20%),the rate of transfer into ICU (2.61% vs. 3.69%) or the mortality (1.74% vs. 2.30%)(P>0.05). ConclusionOn the basis of CAP guidelines,the dynamic monitoring of PCT may shorten the time of antibiotic use and the hospitalization,reduce the cost of hospitalization and the rate of chest CT scan in patients with CAP.
ObjectiveTo explore the value of procalcitonin-to-albumin (PAR) in patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS).MethodsA retrospective study was carried on patients diagnosed with ARDS from December 2016 to March 2018. The receiver-operating characteristics (ROC) curve was used to identify the cutoff value of PAR. The association of PAR and 28-day mortality was evaluated using univariate and multivariable Cox regression.ResultsIn the final analysis, there were a total of 255 patients included. Of whom 164 (64.3%) was male, 91 (35.7%) was female and the mean age was 52.1±14.5 years old. The 28-day mortality of all the patients was 32.9% (n=84). ROC curve revealed that the cutoff value of PAR was 0.039 (specificity: 0.714, sensitivity: 0.702) and area under the curve was 0.793 (95%CI: 0.735 - 0.850, P<0.001). The following variables were considered for multivariable adjustment: age, body mass index, pneumonia, aspiration, sepsis, surgery, PaO2/FiO2, red blood cell counts and PAR (P<0.01 in univariate analysis). After multivariable analysis, only age (HR: 1.033, 95%CI: 1.009 - 1.059, P=0.008), PaO2/FiO2 (HR: 0.992, 95%CI: 0.985 - 1.000, P=0.044) and PAR (HR: 4.899, 95%CI: 2.148 - 11.174, P<0.001) remained independently associated with 28-day mortality (P<0.05).ConclusionHigh PAR predicts a poor outcome in ARDS patients, therefore it appears to be a prognostic biomarker of outcomes in patients with ARDS.
ObjectiveTo systematically review the diagnostic value of procalcitonin (PCT) for tuberculous pleural effusion. MethodsWe electronically searched CNKI, WanFang Data, VIP, CBM, PubMed, The Cochrane Library and EMbase from inception to April, 2013, to collect the literature about the diagnostic value of PCT for tuberculous pleural effusion compared with gold standard (positive outcomes of mycobacterium tuberculosis culture). Two reviewers screened literature according to the inclusion and exclusion criteria, extracted data, and assessed the quality of included studies. MetaDiSc 1.4 were used to conduct the meta-analysis. ResultsEight studies were finally included. The results of meta-analysis showed the pooled sensitivity and specificity were 0.63 (95%CI 0.58 to 0.68) and 0.76 (95%CI 0.70 to 0.81), respectively. The positive likelihood ratio and negative likelihood ratio were 2.72 (95%CI 1.48 to 5.02) and 0.49 (95%CI 0.29 to 0.82), respectively. The diagnostic odds ratio (DOR) was 5.77 (95%CI 1.89 to 17.58). And the SROC AUC was 0.79. Heterogeneity was mainly derived from the QUADAS score and Begg's test showed there was no presence of publication bias. ConclusionPCT is a potential marker in the diagnosis of benign and tuberculous pleural effusion, which can be used to determine diagnosis identification of tuberculous pleural effusion.
ObjectiveTo compare and evaluate the diagnostic value of procalcitonin(PCT) and soluble triggering receptor expressed on myeloid cells-1(sTREM-1) for ventilator-associated pneumonia(VAP). MethodsThe related studies were systematically searched in PubMed, OvidSP (EMBASE), Cochrane Library, clinicaltrials.gov, EBSCO, CBM, CNKI and Wanfang database and the methodological quality of all eligible studies were assessed using the Quality Assessment for Studies of Diagnostic Accuracy (QUADAS) tool. The sensitivity, specificity, positive likelihood ratio, negative likelihood ratio, diagnostic odds ratio (DOR), and areas under the summary receiver operating characteristic (sROC) curve of PCT and sTREM-1 were pooled by Meta-disc software, respectively. Area under the sROC curve (AUC) was compared using Z-test. In addition, Bayes's theorem was used to calculate the probability of VAP, conditioned by the likelihood ratio as a function of the pretest probability. ResultsIn total, 31 studies were included (20 studies on PCT and 11 studies on sTREM-1). The combined sensitivity, specificity, DOR and AUC of diagnosing VAP by PCT was 0.78, 0.74, 15.21, and 0.868, respectively. And the combined sensitivity, specificity, DOR and AUC of diagnosing VAP by sTREM-1 was 0.88, 0.80, 30.28, and 0.919, respectively. There was no statistical difference between two areas under the sROC curve (P=0.25). ConclusionsTREM-1 is superior to PCT in diagnosing VAP, however, neither can confirm nor exclude VAP alone.
Objective To evaluate the value of serumprocalcitonin( PCT) guided antibiotic strategy in the treatment of acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease( AECOPD) .Methods From August 2011 to June 2012, a total of 96 patients hospitalized for AECOPD were randomly assigned into a PCT-guided group( n = 48) and an empirical therapy group( n = 48) . The PCT levels of PCT-guided group were measured by immunochemiluminometric assays before and 5,7, 10 days after treatment. The PCT-guided group was treated with antibiotics according to serum PCT levels, ie. antibiotic treatment was applied when PCT level ≥ 0. 25 μg/L and was discouraged when PCT level lt; 0. 25 μg/L. The empirical therapy group received antibiotics according to physician’s decision. The antibiotics usage rate, length of antibiotic exposure, length of hospitalization, clinical efficacy, hospital mortality, rate of invasive mechanical ventilation and costs of hospitalization were recorded. Results The antibiotics usage rate, length of antibiotic exposure, length of hospitalization, and costs of hospitalization in the PCT-guided group were all lower than those of the empirical therapy group( P lt;0.05) while clinical efficacy, hospital mortality and rate of invasive mechanical ventilation were similar in two groups(Pgt;0.05) . Conclusion PCT guided antibiotic strategy can be used in the treatment of AECOPD, which may reduce the dose of antibiotic drugs to avoid bacterial resistance and lower costs of hospitalization.
Objective?To evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of procalcitonin (PCT) for ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP). Methods?We searched MEDLINE, EMbase, The Cochrane Library, CBM, BIOSIS to identify all diagnostic tests which evaluated the diagnostic value of PCT in patients with VAP. QUADAS items were used to evaluate the quality of the included studies. Pooled sensitivity, specificity, positive likelihood ratio (+LR), negative likelihood ratio (-LR), summary receiver operating characteristic (SROC) curve, and the heterogeneity of the included studies were calculated by using the Meta-disk software. Results?Five studies which were identified from 103 references met the inclusion criteria. The summary sensitivity, specificity, +LR, and –LR values were 0.70 (95%CI 0.62 to 0.77), 0.76 (95%CI 0.69 to 0.82), 5.651 (95%CI 1.237 to 25.810), and 0.349 (95%CI 0.155 to 0.784), respectively. Overall area under the curve (AUC) of SROC curve was 0.884 (DOR=19.416, 95%CI 2.473 to 152.47), demonstrating significant heterogeneity (I2gt;50%). Conclusion?The use of PCT for VAP diagnosis has only a moderate sensitivity and specificity. Although the overall accuracy of VAP diagnosis is relatively high, there is significant heterogeneity between the studies, so more high-quality studies are needed. Besides, using PCT alone to diagnose VAP is not sufficient, and a combination with other clinical evaluations is necessary.
Objective To assess the value of procalcitonin ( PCT) in serum and percentage of infected cells ( PIC) in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid ( BALF) for the diagnosis of early ventilator-associatedpneumonia ( VAP) .Methods A prospective observational study was conducted in a teaching hospital. The patients consecutively admitted to the intensive care unit from January 2011 to June 2012, who received mechanical ventilation for more than 48h and clinically suspected for VAP, were recruited in the study.Patients with infection outside the lungs and previous diagnosed infection were excluded. PCT was detected and bronchoalveolar lavage was performed in the day when VAP was diagnosed. BALF cells were stained by May-Grunwald Giemsa ( MGG) for counting 100 phagocytic cells and calculating infected cells ( ICs )percentage.Results 76 of all 421 patients were enrolled in this study, 64 of which were diagnosed, 12 were under-diagnosed. The PCT [ ( 3. 48 ±1. 46) ng/mL vs. ( 1. 53 ±0. 60) ng/mL] and PIC [ ( 3. 11 ±1. 47) % vs. ( 1. 08 ±0. 29) % ] were significant higher in the patients with VAP. The threshold of 2 ng/mL of PCT and 2% of PIC corresponded to sensitivity of 78. 12% and 78. 12% , and specificity of 75. 00% and 91. 67% , respectively. The area under the receiver operating characteristic ( ROC) curve was 0. 87 ( 95% CI 78. 9%-95. 9% ) and 0. 874 ( 95% CI 79. 2% -94. 9% ) , respectively. The area under ROC curve was 0. 979, and the sensitivity was 97. 36% , specificity was 97. 36% when the two cutoff values were both achieved. Conclusion PCT and PIC are useful markers to diagnose early VAP quickly and conveniently and allow early antibiotic treatment of patients with suspected VAP.
ObjectiveTo systematically review the efficacy of antibiotic treatment in sepsis patients under the guidance of procalcitonin. MethodsDatabases including PubMed, The Cochrane Library (Issue 9, 2016), EMbase, Web of Science, CBM, WanFang Data, VIP and CNKI were electronically searched from inception to September 2016 to collect randomized controlled trials (RCTs) about antibiotic treatment in sepsis under the guidance of procalcitonin. Two reviewers independently screened literature, extracted data and assessed the risk bias of included studies, and then meta-analysis was performed by RevMan 5.3 software. ResultsA total of 15 RCTs involving 3 328 sepsis patients were included. Among them, 1 649 were in the procalcitionin group and 1 679 patients in the control group. The results of meta-analysis showed that:the PCT group could significantly reduce the using time of antibiotics (MD=-2.37, 95%CI -2.96 to -1.78, P<0.000 01), the ICU length of stay (MD=-0.26, 95%CI -0.46 to -0.07, P=0.007), the hospital length of stay (MD=-2.78, 95%CI -4.53 to -1.04, P=0.002), as well as the 28-day mortality (MD=0.78, 95%CI 0.66 to 0.93, P=0.005). There were no significant differences between the two groups in ICU mortality, in-hospital mortality and clinical cure rate. ConclusionUsing the procalcitontin to guide the antibiotic treatment in sepsis can reduce the patients' use of antibiotics, ICU length of stay, in-hospital length of stay and 28-day mortality, but can not reduce the patients' ICU mortality, in-hospital mortality and clinical cure rate. Due to the limited quality and quantity of included studies, the current conclusions are needed more studies to validate.
ObjectiveTo investigate the prognostic value of serum procalcitonin (PCT) level and its change for patients with severe trauma and sepsis. MethodsEighty-two patients with severe trauma and sepsis treated between June 2013 and June 2014 were chosen to be our study subjects. According to the clinical outcome at day 28, they were divided into survival group (n=54) and death group (n=28). Serum procalcitonin levels at hour 0, 24, 48, 72, 96, and 120 after admitted to the emergency intensive care unit were detected in all the patients. Then we calculated the rate of procalcitonin change in each time points, injury severity score (ISS) score, acute physiology and chronic health evaluation (APACHE)Ⅱ score and white blood cells (WBC) count. ResultsProcalciton level at hour 24, 48, 72, 96 and 120 of the survival group was significantly lower than the death group (P<0.05); the rate of procalcitonin change at hour 24, 48, 72, 96 and 120 was significantly lower than the death group (P<0.05), and the APACHE Ⅱ score was significantly lower than the death group (P<0.01). There was no significant difference in the ISS score and WBC count between the two groups (P>0.05). ConclusionEarly procalcitonin level and its dynamic change are good indicators in judging the prognosis of patients with severe trauma and sepsis, especially the early dynamic change in the rate of procalcitonin.
ObjectiveTo evaluate the value of serum procalcitonin (PCT) level after conventional intravenous antibiotic treatment to predict the risk of re-exacerbation, and vertify the feasiblity of an additional course of oral antibiotics after discharge to reduce the risk of re-exacerbation. MethodsThe patients who hospitalized in West China Hospital from October 2012 to October 2013 because of infectious acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (AECOPD) were recruited. The concentrations of PCT and C-reactive protein (CRP), the number of white blood cell (WBC) and neutrophil percentage at the end of intravenous antibiotic therapy were recorded. The information about additional course of antibiotics was collected according to the medical instruction and visit. The subjects were followed up for 1 year.The time to the first re-exacerbation and frequencies of exacerbations were recorded. The Cox regression model was used to estimate the hazard rations (HR). ResultsOne hundred and thirty-eight eligible patients were included totally. The HRs in PCT≥0.11μg/L and neutrophil percentage≥70% were 1.462 (P=0.035) and 1.673 (P=0.005) respectively, suggesting higher risk of re-exacerbation. There was no relationship of CRP (P=0.330) or WBC (P=0.432) with the risk of re-exacerbation. Generally an additional course of antibiotics had no effects on re-exacerbation (P=0.231) but this therapy could reduce the risk of re-exacerbation in high PCT level group (HR=2.29, P=0.004). ConclusionsSerum PCT concentrations and neutrophil percentage after conventional intravenous antibiotic treatment can predict the risk of re-exacerbations in the future. An additional course of antibiotics in the patients with high PCT level can reduce the risk of re-exacerbation.