A retrospective observational study of biomarker levels and severity assessment in pediatric community-acquired pneumonia

Multiple studies have investigated the role of biomarkers in predicting pneumonia severity in adults but minimal conclusive research exists for children. This study aimed to determine if the following biomarker levels, collected within 72 hours of hospital arrival: white blood cell count (WBC), platelet count, C-reactive protein (CRP), procalcitonin (PCT), neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio, neutrophil count, or band count associated with community-associated pneumonia (CAP) severity in children.Methods:A retrospective chart review was conducted on children (aged 60 days to 18 years) diagnosed with CAP, and admitted to a regional, tertiary hospital (Charleston, WV, USA) for 3 years (2015–2018). Patients were stratified into 2 severity cohorts, mild (no ICU care), and moderate/severe (required ICU care). Biomarker values were then compared between the severity cohorts and area under the curve (AUC), and cut-off values and performance characteristics were calculated.Results:A total of 108 patients met inclusion criteria with 46% having moderate/severe CAP. Elevated levels of CRP (51.7 mg/L in mild vs. 104.8 mg/L in moderate/severe, P = .003, PCT (0.29 ng/ml in mild vs. 4.02 ng/mL in moderate/severe, P = .001) and band counts (8% in mild vs. 15% moderate/severe, P = .009) were associated with increased pneumonia severity. In predicting moderate/severe CAP, PCT had the highest AUC of 0.77 (P = .001) followed by bands AUC of 0.69 (P = .009) and CRP AUC of 0.67 (P = .003). Cut-off for PCT of 0.55 ng/mL had a sensitivity of 83% and a specificity of 65%. Cut-off level of 53.1 mg/L for CRP had a sensitivity of 79% and specificity of 52%. Cut off level of 12.5% bands had a sensitivity of 61% and specificity of 71%. In a multivariable model controlled for patient demographics and other biomarker levels, only PCT levels significantly predicted moderate/severe CAP (adjusted odds ratio: 1.40 [95% CI, 1.14–1.73], P = .002).Conclusion:Biomarkers, in particular PCT, obtained early in hospitalization may perform as possible predictors for CAP severity in children and be beneficial in guiding CAP management. However, biomarkers in pneumonia should not drive severity assessment or patient management independent of clinical presentation.     

An effective model for screening moderate-to-severe obstructive sleep apnea based on the STOP-BANG questionnaire

BackgroundThis study aimed to develop a more effective screening model for moderate-to-severe obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) based on the best tool among Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS), NoSAS score and STOP-BANG questionnaire (SBQ).MethodsThis study screened 2,031 consecutive subjects referred with suspected OSA from 2012 to 2016, including the test cohort from 2012 to 2014 and the validation cohort from 2014 to 2016. Anthropometric measurements, polysomnographic data, ESS, NoSAS scores and SBQ scores were recorded. Receiver operating characteristic curve analyses were performed and the final predictive models were verified in a validation cohort.ResultsA total of 1,840 adults were finally included. The performance of ESS, NoSAS score and SBQ in screening OSA was compared. The diagnostic accuracy of SBQ was superior to ESS and NoSAS. A predictive model based on SBQ yielded an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.931 (95% CI: 0.915–0.946), and the sensitivity and specificity were 84.47 (95% CI: 81.4–87.2) and 87.36 (95% CI: 83.9–90.3) respectively. In the validation cohort, the AUC was 0.955 (95% CI: 0.938–0.969), with a sensitivity and specificity of 86.79 (95% CI: 83.2–89.9) and 90.88 (95% CI: 87.2–93.8) respectively. In addition, the model performed moderately in screening mild OSA with the AUC being 0.771 (95% CI: 0.721–0.815).ConclusionsThe SBQ was effective in screening moderate-to-severe OSA. And a SBQ -based predictive model afforded excellent diagnostic efficacy, which could be applied in clinical practice.     

Diagnostic value of soluble CD163 serum levels in patients suspected of meningitis: comparison with CRP and procalcitonin

The aim of the study was to evaluate and compare the diagnostic value of sCD163 serum levels with CRP and PCT in meningitis and bacterial infection. An observational cohort study was conducted between February 2001 and February 2005. The study population comprised 55 patients suspected of meningitis on admission to a 27-bed infectious disease department at a Danish university hospital. Biomarker serum levels on admission were measured. Sensitivity and specificity were evaluated at pre-specified cut-off values and overall diagnostic accuracies were compared using receiver-operating characteristic AUCs (areas under curves). Patients were classified by 2 sets of diagnostic criteria into: A) purulent meningitis, serous meningitis or non-meningitis, and B) systemic bacterial infection, local bacterial infection or non-bacterial disease. An elevated serum level of sCD163 was the most specific marker for distinguishing bacterial infection from non-bacterial disease (specificity 0.91; sensitivity 0.47). However, the overall diagnostic accuracy of CRP (AUC =0.91) and PCT (AUC =0.87) were superior (p<0.02 and p<0.06) compared to that of sCD163 (AUC =0.72). For the diagnosis of systemic bacterial infection, the AUC of sCD163 (0.83) did not differ significantly from those of CRP or PCT. All markers had AUCs <0.75 for differentiating between purulent meningitis and other conditions. In conclusion, CRP and PCT had high diagnostic value and were superior as markers of bacterial infection compared to sCD163. However, sCD163 may be helpful in rapid identification of patients with systemic bacterial infection. If used as an adjunct to lumbar puncture, PCT and CRP had very high diagnostic accuracy for distinguishing between bacterial and viral infection in patients with spinal fluid pleocytosis. However, none of the markers was useful as an independent tool for the clinical diagnosis of patients with purulent meningitis.     

Establishment of a scoring model for early diagnosis of infection associated with liver failure

Introduction and ObjectivesInfection is a common complication of liver failure. Serum inflammatory markers used to diagnose infection have sufficient diagnostic sensitivity but low specificity. This study aimed to improve the early diagnosis of infections in liver failure patients by developing a diagnostic model and evaluating its predictive ability.Patients and MethodsA retrospective analysis of clinical data from liver failure patients. Cases were divided into infected and non-infected groups according to their clinical diagnosis. Nine infection-related predictors (age, body temperature, neutrophil ratio (NE%), procalcitonin (PCT), C-reactive protein (CRP), lactic acid (Lac), serum albumin (Alb), model of end-stage liver disease (MELD) score, and sequential organ failure assessment (SOFA) score) were included in multivariate logistic regression analysis. The diagnostic model was validated, and the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to analyze its predictive accuracy.ResultsIn the model group, multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that age, body temperature, PCT, CRP, Lac, and SOFA score were independent predictors of infection associated with liver failure (P < 0.05). The area under the ROC curve (AUC) of the model was 0.899 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.846–0.939), and the sensitivity and specificity were 86.2% and 80.4%, respectively. The AUC for the validation group was 0.953 (95% CI 0.899–0.983), and the sensitivity and specificity were 91.7% and 84.2%, respectively.ConclusionsThis study reports a model for early diagnosis of infection in liver failure patients. The model had high overall accuracy and showed good reproducibility and reliability in patients from different centers in the same region.     

Diagnostic accuracy of different computer-aided diagnostic systems for prostate cancer based on magnetic resonance imaging: A systematic review with diagnostic meta-analysis

Background:Computer-aided detection (CAD) system for accurate and automated prostate cancer (PCa) diagnosis have been developed, however, the diagnostic test accuracy of different CAD systems is still controversial. This systematic review aimed to assess the diagnostic accuracy of CAD systems based on magnetic resonance imaging for PCa.Methods:Cochrane library, PubMed, EMBASE and China Biology Medicine disc were systematically searched until March 2019 for original diagnostic studies. Two independent reviewers selected studies on CAD based on magnetic resonance imaging diagnosis of PCa and extracted the requisite data. Pooled sensitivity, specificity, and the area under the summary receiver operating characteristic curve were calculated to estimate the diagnostic accuracy of CAD system.Results:Fifteen studies involving 1945 patients were included in our analysis. The diagnostic meta-analysis showed that overall sensitivity of CAD system ranged from 0.47 to 1.00 and, specificity from 0.47 to 0.89. The pooled sensitivity of CAD system was 0.87 (95% CI: 0.76–0.94), pooled specificity 0.76 (95% CI: 0.62–0.85), and the area under curve (AUC) 0.89 (95% CI: 0.86–0.91). Subgroup analysis showed that the support vector machines produced the best AUC among the CAD classifiers, with sensitivity ranging from 0.87 to 0.92, and specificity from 0.47 to 0.95. Among different zones of prostate, CAD system produced the best AUC in the transitional zone than the peripheral zone and central gland; sensitivity ranged from 0.89 to 1.00, and specificity from 0.38 to 0.85.Conclusions:CAD system can help improve the diagnostic accuracy of PCa especially using the support vector machines classifier. Whether the performance of the CAD system depends on the specific locations of the prostate needs further investigation.     

Meta-analysis of procalcitonin as a predictor for acute kidney injury

Background:Procalcitonin (PCT) was used for predicting the development of acute kidney injury (AKI) in several studies recently. We aimed to investigate the accuracy of PCT for predicting AKI in this study.Methods:Studies that assessed the predictive performance of PCT for the development of AKI in adult patients were searched from Medline, Embase, and the Cochrane Library from inception to June 2020. We calculated the pooled sensitivities and specificities and the area under the summary receiver-operating characteristic (SROC) curves. I² was used to test the heterogeneity and the potential heterogeneity was investigated by meta-regression.Results:In total, 9 of 119 studies with 4852 patients were included, 1272 were diagnosed with AKI. In the overall analysis, the area under the SROC curve was 0.82 (95% CI, 0.79–0.85) and the pooled sensitivity and specificity were 0.76 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.64–0.85) and 0.75 (95% CI, 0.61–0.86), respectively. In the subgroup analysis among septic patients, the pooled sensitivity and specificity were 0.59 (95% CI, 0.29–0.84) and 0.53 (95% CI, 0.31–0.74), and the area under the SROC was 0.57 (95% CI, 0.53–0.62).Conclusion:PCT may be a potential predictor for the development of AKI.     

Value of clinical tests in diagnosing anterior cruciate ligament injuries: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Objectives:This study compared 4 clinical tests with reference to magnetic resonance imaging and arthroscopic visualization to comprehensively evaluate their diagnostic value for anterior cruciate ligament injuries.Methods:We systematically searched 10 electronic databases from January 1, 2010, to May 1, 2021. Two reviewers collected data in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Item for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses 2020 guidelines. The quality of each study was assessed using the Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies 2 tool. A meta-analysis was performed using Meta-Disc version 1.4 and Stata SE version 15.0.Results:Eighteen articles involving 2031 participants were included. The results of the meta-analysis showed that for the Lachman test, the pooled sensitivity, specificity, positive likelihood ratio, negative likelihood ratio, diagnosis odds ratio, area under the curve (AUC) of summary receiver operating characteristic (SROC), and Q* were 0.76 (95% CI, 0.73–0.78), 0.89 (95% CI, 0.87–0.91), 5.65 (95% CI, 4.05–7.86), 0.28 (95% CI, 0.23–0.36), 22.95 (95% CI, 14.34–36.72), 0.88, and 0.81, respectively. For the anterior drawer test, the pooled sensitivity, specificity, positive likelihood ratio, negative likelihood ratio, diagnosis odds ratio, AUC of SROC, and Q* were 0.64 (95% CI, 0.61–0.68), 0.87 (95% CI, 0.84–0.90), 3.57 (95% CI, 2.13–5.96), 0.44 (95% CI, 0.32–0.59), 8.77 (95% CI, 4.11–18.74), 0.85, and 0.78, respectively. For the pivot shift test, the pooled sensitivity, specificity, positive likelihood ratio, negative likelihood ratio, diagnosis odds ratio, AUC of SROC, and Q* were 0.59 (95% CI, 0.56–0.62), 0.97 (95% CI, 0.95–0.98), 13.99 (95% CI, 9.96–19.64), 0.44 (95% CI, 0.35–0.55), 29.46 (95% CI, 15.60–55.67), 0.98, and 0.94, respectively. For the lever sign test, the pooled sensitivity, specificity, positive likelihood ratio, negative likelihood ratio, diagnosis odds ratio, AUC of SROC, and Q* were 0.79 (95% CI, 0.75–0.83), 0.92 (95% CI, 0.87–0.95), 9.56 (95% CI, 2.76–33.17), 0.23 (95% CI, 0.12–0.46), 47.38 (95% CI, 8.68–258.70), 0.94, and 0.87, respectively.Conclusions:Existing evidence shows that these clinical tests have high diagnostic efficacy for anterior cruciate ligament injuries, and that every test has its own advantages and disadvantages. However, the above results should be validated through additional studies, considering the limited quality and quantity of our sample.     

Diagnostic Accuracy of Serum Procalcitonin for Spontaneous Bacterial Peritonitis Due to End-stage Liver Disease: A Meta-analysis

Early diagnosis and prompt treatment of spontaneous bacterial peritonitis (SBP) due to end-stage liver disease is vital to shorten hospital stays and reduce mortality. Many studies have explored the potential usefulness of serum procalcitonin (PCT) in predicting SBP. The aim of this study is to evaluate the overall diagnostic accuracy of PCT levels for identifying SBP due to end-stage liver disease.After performing a systematic search of the Medline, Embase, and Cochrane databases for studies that evaluated the diagnostic role of PCT for SBP, sensitivity, specificity, and other measures of accuracy of PCT concentrations in serum for SBP diagnosis were pooled using random-effects models. A summary receiver operating characteristic curve was used to summarize overall test performance.Seven publications met the inclusion criteria covering 742 episodes of suspected SBP along with 339 confirmed cases. The summary estimates for serum PCT in the diagnosis of SBP attributable to end-stage liver disease were: sensitivity 0.82 (95% CI 0.79–0.87), specificity 0.86 (95% CI 0.82–0.89), positive likelihood ratio 4.94 (95% CI 2.28–10.70), negative likelihood ratio 0.22 (95% CI 0.10–0.52), and diagnostic OR 22.55 (95% CI 7.01–108.30). The area under the curve was 0.92. There was evidence of significant heterogeneity but no evidence of publication bias.Serum PCT is a relatively sensitive and specific test for the identification of SBP. However, due to the limited high-quality studies available, medical decisions should be carefully made in the context of both PCT test results and other clinical findings.     

C-reactive protein testing to reduce antibiotic prescribing for acute respiratory infections in adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BackgroundAntimicrobial resistance (AMR) has become a worldwide public health problem. Abuse of antibiotic in acute respiratory tract infections (ARI) contributes to the increasing AMR. C-reactive protein (CRP) testing may help reduce antibiotic overprescribing, but the available evidence quality varies widely. There is no meta-analysis of CRP testing to guide the antibiotic prescribing for adult ARI. Therefore, we conducted this meta-analysis to determine the effectiveness of CRP testing to guide antibiotic prescribing in adult ARI.MethodsWe searched the Cochrane Library, PubMed, and EMBASE databases for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) involving our meta-analysis from the establishment of these databases until January 16, 2021. Two reviewers extracted the data separately and pooled the data using RevMan5.3. The evidence quality was appraised strictly with GRADE system.ResultsSeven studies included with 3,614 patients. Compared with routine care, CRP testing reduced antibiotic prescribing rate at the index consultation significantly [risk ratio (RR) =0.76; 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.68–0.85; P<0.00001], and during 28 days follow-up (RR =0.77; 95% CI: 0.73–0.81; P<0.00001). There were no significant differences between CRP testing and routine care in clinical recovery of patients within 7 days (RR =0.95; 95% CI: 0.90–1.01; P=0.08). Moreover, adverse events were not significantly different between CRP testing and routine care.DiscussionCRP testing can reduce the antibiotic prescribing rate at index consultation and during 28 days
follow-up. These findings support the conclusion that CRP testing is valuable to guide the antibiotic prescribing for adult ARI.     

A systematic review and meta-analysis of circulating cell-free DNA as a diagnostic biomarker for non-small cell lung cancer

BackgroundEarly diagnosis of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is crucial for treatment. Circulating cell-free DNA (cfDNA) is an extracellular nucleic acid found in serum, and tumor cfDNA circulating in the blood may be used as a biomarker for early diagnosis. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the application value of cfDNA as a biomarker for the diagnosis of NSCLC through meta-analysis.MethodsWe searched the China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Wanfang, VIP, PubMed, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Embase, and Web of Science databases using the following search terms: lung cancer, NSCLC, biomarkers, circulating cfDNA, cfDNA, circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA), circulating cell-free tumor DNA, and diagnosis. The retrieval period was set until September 2021. According to PICOS (patients, intervention, comparison, outcomes, and study design) principles the inclusion criteria were: aged ≥18 years; at least 10 NSCLC cases; NSCLC patients diagnosed by histopathology or cytology; circulating cfDNA was detected; outcome data could be completely extracted. Bias risk assessment was conducted according to the QUADAS (Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies). RevMan 5.3 was used for meta-analysis.ResultsEight studies met the inclusion criteria, including a total of 618 NSCLC patients and 635 healthy subjects. The overall sensitivity and specificity were 0.79 [95% confidence interval (CI): 0.75–0.82] and 0.81 (95% CI: 0.78–0.84), respectively. The area under the curve (AUC) of the summary receiving operating characteristic (SROC) curve was 0.8941. The pooled positive likelihood ratio, pooled negative likelihood ratio, and pooled diagnostic odds ratio were 5.37 (95% CI: 2.67–10.81), 0.24 (95% CI: 0.15–0.38), and 24.68 (95% CI: 8.85–68.84), respectively. The patient selection bias was high in two articles was high, unclear in one article, and low in the remaining five ones. The risk of bias in the research index test was unclear in one article, and low in the remaining seven articles. The reference standard bias, and flow and time bias of all articles was low.ConclusionsCirculating cfDNA is an efficacy biomarker in diagnosis of NSCLC. Its clinical application technology is worthy of further research.     

血清降钙素原、C反应蛋白、中性粒细胞比值联合检测在肝硬化腹水并自发性细菌性腹膜炎诊治中的意义

目的:探讨血清降钙素原(PCT)、C反应蛋白(CRP)、中性粒细胞比值(NEUT)联合检测在肝硬化腹水并发自发性细菌性腹膜炎(SBP)诊治中的应用价值。方法:选择2014年2月至2018年7月就诊的50例肝硬化腹水并发SBP患者作为实验组,同期选取肝硬化腹水无SBP患者42例作为对照组。使用AFIAS-50干式荧光免疫分析仪,SMART 300全自动化学发光测定仪,BC-5600全自动血液细胞分析仪检测患者血清PCT、CRP和NEUT,并绘制受试者工作特征曲线(ROC),分析其诊治价值。结果 :与对照组患者相比,实验组患者的PCT、CRP、NEUT值均显著增高(P<0.01),PCT的曲线下面积为0.95,95%CI为0.923~0.977,最佳截断值为0.54,灵敏度为92.00%,特异度为90.48%;NEUT的曲线下面积为0.91,95%CI为0.864~0.956,最佳截断值为71.02%,灵敏度为88.00%,特异度为85.71%;CRP的曲线下面积为0.88,95%CI为0.808~0.952,最佳截断值为9.65,灵敏度为84.00%,特异度为76.57%,相对PCT和NEUT而言较低。三者联合检测的灵敏度为93.00%,特异度为86.13%,约登指数为0.7913。结论:PCT在肝硬化腹水并发SBP的诊治中,筛查效果最好,PCT联合CRP、NEUT检测可弥补CRP诊断肝硬化腹水并发SBP患者的不足。     

Diagnostic value of sepsis biomarkers in hematopoietic stem cell transplant recipients in a condition of high prevalence of gram-negative pathogens

Objective/backgroundA decision about the need for antimicrobial therapy in a patient with febrile neutropenia after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) is often complicated because of the low frequency of culture isolation and reduced clinical manifestation of infection. Usefulness and choice of sepsis biomarkers to distinguish bloodstream infection (BSI) from other causes of febrile episode is still argued in HSCT recipients in modern epidemiological situations characterized by the emergence of highly resistant gram-negative microorganisms. In this study a comparative analysis of diagnostic values of presepsin, procalcitonin (PCT), and C-reactive protein (CRP) was performed as sepsis biomarkers in adult patients after HSCT in a condition of high prevalence of gram-negative pathogens.MethodsA prospective observational clinical study was performed at the Center of Hematology and Bone Marrow Transplantation in Minsk, Republic of Belarus. The biomarkers (presepsin, PCT, and CRP) were assessed in a 4-hour period after the onset of febrile neutropenia episode in adult patients after HSCT. Microbiologically-confirmed BSI caused by a gram-negative pathogen was set as a primary outcome.ResultsClinical and laboratory data were analyzed in 52 neutropenic patients after HSCT aged 18–79 years. Out of the biomarkers assessed, the best diagnostic value was shown in presepsin (area under the curve [AUC]: 0.889, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.644–0.987, p < .0001) with 75% sensitivity and 100% specificity, then in PCT (AUC: 0.741, 95% CI: 0.573–0.869, p = .0037) with 62% sensitivity and 88% specificity. The optimal cut-off value for CRP was set as 165 mg/L, while it had an average diagnostic value (AUC: 0.707, 95% CI: 0.564–0.825, p = .0049) with low sensitivity (40%) and should not be routinely recommended as a biomarker in adult patients with suspected BSI after HSCT.ConclusionPresepsin may be recommended in adult patients with suspected gram-negative BSI after HSCT as a possible additional supplementary test with a cut-off value of 218 pg/mL. PCT is inferior to presepsin in terms of sensitivity and specificity, but still shows a good quality of diagnostic value with an optimal cut-off value of 1.5 ng/mL. CRP showed an average diagnostic value with low sensitivity (40%) and should not be routinely recommended as a biomarker in adult patients with suspected BSI after HSCT in a condition of high prevalence of gram-negative pathogens.     

CT-based radiomics analysis for differentiation between thymoma and thymic carcinoma

BackgroundThe purpose of our study was to differentiate between thymoma and thymic carcinoma using a radiomics analysis based on the computed tomography (CT) image features.MethodsThe CT images of 61 patients with thymic epithelial tumors (TETs) who underwent contrast-enhanced CT with slice thickness <1 mm were analyzed. Pathological examination of the surgical specimens revealed thymoma in 45 and thymic carcinoma in 16. Tumor volume and the ratio of major axis to minor axis were calculated using a computer-aided diagnostic software. Sixty-one different radiomics features in the segmented CT images were extracted, then filtered and minimized by least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) regression to select the optimal radiomics features for predicting thymic carcinoma. The association between the quantitative values and a diagnosis of thymic carcinoma were analyzed with logistic regression models. Parameters identified as significant in univariate analysis were included in multiple analyses. Receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curves were assessed to evaluate the diagnostic performance.ResultsThymic carcinoma was significantly predominant in men (P=0.001). Optimal radiomics features for predicting thymic carcinoma were as follows: gray-level co-occurrence matrix (GLCM)-homogeneity, GLCM-energy, compactness, large zone high gray-level emphasis (LZHGE), solidity, size of minor axis, and kurtosis. Multiple logistic regression analysis of these features revealed solidity and GLCM-energy as independent indicators associated with thymic carcinoma [odds ratio, 14.7 and 14.3; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.6–139.0 and 3.0–68.7; and P=0.045 and 0.002, respectively]. Area under the curve (AUC) for diagnosing thymic carcinoma was 0.882 (sensitivity, 81.2%; specificity, 91.1%). Multivariate analysis adjusted for sex similarly revealed two features (solidity and GLCM-energy) as independent indicators associated with thymic carcinoma (odds ratio, 14.6 and 23.9; 95% CI: 2.4–89.2 and 1.9–302.8; P=0.004 and 0.014, respectively). Adjusted AUC for diagnosing thymic carcinoma was 0.921 (95% CI: 0.82–0.97): sensitivity, 62.5% and specificity, 100%.ConclusionsTwo texture features (GLCM-energy and solidity) were significant predictors of thymic carcinoma.     

High serum C-reactive protein levels predict survival in patients with treated advanced lung adenocarcinoma

BackgroundThe prognosis of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) varies greatly depending on whether or not it can receive molecular-targeted drug treatment including epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs). We investigated the clinical utility of C-reactive protein (CRP) levels measured at the time of diagnosis in EGFR-mutant and wild-type NSCLC patients who had undergone first-line therapy.MethodsSerum CRP levels were analyzed in 213 patients, of whom 89 patients had advanced EGFR-mutated NSCLC who underwent first-line EGFR-TKI treatment. We used Cox proportional hazards models to study the relationship between CRP and overall survival (OS). CRP cutoff values were obtained from the receiver operating characteristic curve.ResultsMean serum CRP level in treated NSCLC patients were not significantly different in patients with or without EGFR mutations. The optimal CRP cutoff values were 8.1 mg/L for EGFR-mutated NSCLC and 16.7 mg/L for EGFR-wild NSCLC. Based on multivariate analysis, high CRP level (EGFR-mutated, HR: 2.479, 95% CI: 1.331–4.619, P=0.004; EGFR-wild, HR: 3.625, 95% CI: 2.149–6.116, P<0.001) was a significant and independent negative prognostic factor for OS in patients with or without EGFR mutations.ConclusionsHigh CRP levels predicted a lack of response to treatment in patients with advanced lung adenocarcinoma with or without EGFR mutations. Thus, the CRP level is a good and easy to use prognostic factor and objective indicator for clinical practice.     

红细胞沉降率/C反应蛋白比值联合降钙素原在鉴别诊断系统性红斑狼疮活动和细菌性感染中的价值

目的 评价红细胞沉降率(ESR)/C反应蛋白(CRP)比值联合降钙素原(PCT)在鉴别诊断系统性红斑狼疮(SLE)活动和细菌性感染中的价值。方法 将167例SLE患者分为活动组（SLE活动患者）64例和感染组（SLE合并细菌性感染患者）103例,比较两组患者的ESR、CRP、ESR/CRP比值及PCT水平,采用受试者工作特征（ROC）曲线评估上述指标鉴别诊断SLE活动和细菌性感染的价值。结果 活动组患者CRP及PCT均低于感染组,ESR和ESR/CRP比值均高于感染组（P<0.05）。PCT联合ESR/CRP比值鉴别诊断SLE活动和细菌性感染的灵敏度均高于单独检测PCT、CRP、ESR/CRP比值及PCT联合CRP（P<0.05）;而上述5项指标的特异度比较差异均无统计学意义（P>0.05）。PCT联合ESR/CRP比值鉴别诊断SLE活动和细菌性感染的ROC曲线下面积（AUC）均高于CRP、ESR、PCT、ESR/CRP比值、PCT联合CRP（P<0.05）,CRP、ESR、PCT、ESR/CRP比值的约登指数（YI）分别为0.36、0.23、0.40、0.54,对应值分别为22.02mg/L、39mm/h、1.69ng/ml、11.75。结论 PCT和CRP水平在SLE合并细菌性感染者中升高,ESR/CRP比值可作为鉴别诊断SLE活动与细菌性感染的新指标,且ESR/CRP比值<11.75提示SLE合并细菌性感染的可能性大,PCT联合ESR/CRP比值更能提高鉴别诊断SLE活动与细菌性感染的价值。     

细菌性血流感染患者炎症因子的对比分析

目的 对比分析C反应蛋白(CRP)、降钙素原(PCT)及内毒素浓度在革兰阴性及阳性菌血流感染的差异,评价这些指标在早期诊断中的价值.方法 选取接受治疗的293例血流感染患者,根据血培养结果分为革兰阴性菌组(G-组)和革兰阳性菌组(G+组),比较两组患者的CRP、PCT及内毒素水平,对PCT、CRP和内毒素水平进行分析.结果 G-组的血CRP、PCT及内毒素水平均明显高于G+组(P＜0.05).G-组各炎症指标线性相关分析,内毒素与PCT正相关(r=0.801,P＜0.01);PCT与CRP正相关(r=0.626,P＜0.01);内毒素与CRP (r =0.534,P＜0.01).ROC工作曲线分析:G-组PCT的AUC 0.988,P＜0.01,最佳诊断的临界值＞7.375μg/L,敏感度95.9％,特异度99.2％;CRP的AUC 0.465,P=0.311;内毒素AUC 0.997,P＜0.01,最佳诊断的临界值＞16.225 ng/L,敏感度99.4％,特异度99.2％.G+组PCT的AUC 0.012,P＜0.01;CRP的AUC 0.535,P=0.311;内毒素AUC 0.003,P＜0.01.结论 PCT和内毒素可以早期鉴别革兰阳性菌和阴性菌血流感染,早期选择适当抗菌素,有重要的临床价值.     

CD64、CRP、PCT及NLR对儿童社区获得性肺炎的诊断价值

目的探讨中性粒细胞CD64、C反应蛋白(CRP)、降钙素原(PCT)及中性粒细胞与淋巴细胞比值(NLR)在儿童社区获得性肺炎(CAP)中的诊断价值。方法选取海口市人民医院收治的CAP患儿186例,依据病原体不同分为细菌性肺炎组(95例),支原体肺炎组(43例)和病毒性肺炎组(48例)。细菌性肺炎患儿依据入院病情严重程度分为轻症组(75例)和重症组(20例)。采用流式细胞术检测外周血中性粒细胞CD64的表达,同时检测CRP、PCT及NLR水平。应用ROC曲线分析CD64、CRP、PCT及NLR水平对细菌性肺炎的诊断价值。结果细菌性肺炎组治疗前CD64(8.85±3.40 vs 2.26±0.74,2.42±0.95,2.38±0.80)、CRP(38.62±8.50 vs 3.25±0.96,3.42±1.15,4.16±1.53,mg/L)、PCT(6.17±1.40 vs 0.15±0.03,0.34±0.12,0.62±0.28,ng/mL)及NLR(7.84±3.25 vs 2.05±0.96,1.37±0.62,2.48±1.16)水平均明显高于对照组、病毒性肺炎组和支原体肺炎组(P<0.01)。细菌性肺炎患儿治疗后CD64(2.70±1.06 vs 8.85±3.40)、CRP(4.63±1.58 vs 38.62±8.50,mg/L)、PCT(0.21±0.06 vs 6.17±1.40,ng/mL)及NLR(2.28±1.07 vs 7.84±3.25)水平均明显低于治疗前(P<0.01)。重症细菌性肺炎患儿CD64(10.42±4.36 vs 7.60±2.58)、CRP(43.25±10.47 vs 34.85±8.16,mg/L)、PCT(9.26±2.18 vs 4.62±1.15,ng/mL)及NLR(9.75±4.12 vs 6.53±2.90)水平均明显高于轻症细菌性肺炎(P<0.01)。ROC曲线分析显示,CD64、CRP、PCT及NLR单项指标诊断细菌性肺炎的最佳截值分别为3.25、14.80 mg/L、1.83 ng/mL、4.37,四项联合诊断细菌性肺炎的AUC(0.948,95%CI:0.887~0.992)最大,其敏感度和特异度为96.2%和89.3%。Pearson相关分析显示,细菌性肺炎患儿CD64与CRP、PCT及NLR呈正相关(r=0.573、0.729、0.536,P<0.01),CRP与PCT及NLR呈正相关(r=0.602、0.497,P<0.01),PCT与NLR呈正相关(r=0.514,P<0.01)。结论CD64、CRP、PCT及NLR四项联合检测有助于提高细菌性肺炎的诊断价值,并可作为判断CAP患儿病情严重程度的实验室指标。     

Usefulness of procalcitonin for diagnosis of infective endocarditis

The aim of this study was to evaluate the accuracy of procalcitonin (PCT) in predicting infective endocarditis (IE). 23 adult patients with IE, 30 patients with sepsis and 30 with tick-borne encephalitis were included in this prospective study. The PCT serum level, C-reactive protein (CRP), total leukocyte, and immature polymorphonuclear (PMN) cell counts were determined on admission, prior to the institution of antibiotic therapy, and compared according to the diagnosis. The median PCT level in patients with IE endocarditis was 0.81 ng/ml, in patients with sepsis it was 43.74 ng/ml, and in the group with viral infection it was 0.25 ng/ml (P < 0.001). The highest PCT level was found in patients with Staphylococcus aureus endocarditis. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve that used PCT to predict IE was 0.722 (95% CI 0.572–0.873), compared with 0.909 (95% CI 0.829–0.989) for CRP, 0.699 (95% CI 0.551–0.846) for immature PMN cell count, and 0.619 (95% CI 0.468–0.770) for leukocyte count. Our study fails to demonstrate superiority of PCT as a diagnostic laboratorial parameter in predicting IE compared to CRP.     

MRI versus CT for the detection of pulmonary nodules: A meta-analysis

Background:Computed tomography (CT) is the current gold standard for the detection of pulmonary nodules but has high radiation burden. In contrast, many radiologists tried to use magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to replace CT because MRI has no radiation burden associated. Due to the lack of high-level evidence of comparison of the diagnostic accuracy of MRI versus CT for detecting pulmonary nodules, it is unknown whether CT can be replaced successfully by MRI. Therefore, the aim of this study was to compare the diagnostic accuracy of MRI versus CT for detecting pulmonary nodules.Methods:Electronic databases PubMed, EmBase, and Cochrane Library were systematically searched from their inception to September 2017 to identify studies in which CT/MRI was used to diagnose pulmonary nodules. According to true positive, true negative, false negative, and false positive extracted from the included studies, we calculate the pooled sensitivity, specificity, positive likelihood ratio (PLR), negative likelihood ratio (NLR), and area under the curve (AUC) using Stata version 14.0 software (STATA Corp, TX).Results:A total of 8 studies involving a total of 653 individuals were included. The pooled sensitivity, specificity, PLR, NLR, and AUC were 0.91 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.80–0.96), 0.76 (95%CI: 0.58–0.87), 3.72 (95%CI: 2.05–6.76), 0.12 (95%CI: 0.06–0.27), and 0.91 (95%CI: 0.88–0.93) for MRI respectively, while the pooled sensitivity, specificity, PLR, NLR, and AUC for CT were 1.00 (95%CI: 0.95–1.00), 0.99 (95%CI: 0.78–1.00), 79.35 (95%CI: 3.68–1711.06), 0.00 (95%CI: 0.00–0.06), and 1.00 (95%CI: 0.99–1.00), respectively. Further, we compared the diagnostic accuracy of CT versus MRI and found that compared with MRI, CT shows statistically higher sensitivity (odds ratio [OR] for MRI vs CT: 0.91; 95%CI: 0.85–0.98; P value .010), specificity (OR: 0.82; 95%CI: 0.69–0.97; P value .019), PLR (OR: 0.29; 95%CI: 0.10–0.83; P value 0.02), AUC (OR: 0.91; 95%CI: 0.89–0.94; P value < .001), and lower NLR (OR: 8.72; 95%CI: 1.57–48.56; P value .013).Conclusion:Our study suggested both CT and MRI have a high diagnostic accuracy in diagnosing pulmonary nodules, while CT was superior to MRI in sensitivity, specificity, PLR, NLR, and AUC, indicating that in terms of the currently available evidence, MRI could not replace CT in diagnosing pulmonary nodules.     

The diagnostic value of interleukin 6 as a biomarker for gastric cancer: A meta-analysis and systematic review

Background:Gastric cancer is one of the most common cancers and a main cause of global cancer death. The expression of interleukin 6 is associated with the risk of gastric cancer. But the diagnostic accuracy of interleukin 6 remains unclear. This study was designed to assess the diagnostic performance of interleukin 6 in gastric cancer diagnosis.Methods:The related data was obtained from Oncomine and studied using bioinformatics analysis. The PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, Web of science databases were searched for related studies published from inception to July 14, 2020. Measuring tools of diagnostic performance including sensitivity, specificity, and diagnostic odds ratio were pooled using bivariate mixed-effects meta-analysis model. The summery receiver operator characteristic curves were plotted.Results:The result from Oncomine showed that the expression of interleukin 6 in gastric cancer (GC) patients was higher than the normal groups (P < .05). Furthermore, a total of 4 eligible articles were enrolled, containing 390 cases and 404 controls. The diagnostic results were as follows: a sensitivity of 0.80 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.57–0.92), a specificity of 0.86 (95% CI 0.74–0.93), a positive likelihood ratio of 5.76 (95% CI 3.49–9.49), a negative likelihood ratio of 0.23 (95% CI 0.11–0.51) and a diagnostic odds ratio of 24.58 (95% CI 14.14–42.73). The summary area under the receiver operating characteristic curves was 0.90 (95% CI 0.87–0.93).Conclusion:Higher interleukin 6 expression was detected in GC patients, and interleukin 6 could be a helpful indicator of diagnosis of gastric cancer. Further large-scale prospective studies are required for identifying the diagnostic value of interleukin 6 in gastric cancer.