Serum procalcitonin for differentiating bacterial infection from disease flares in patients with autoimmune diseases

Early differentiation between bacterial infections and disease flares in autoimmune disease patients is important due to different treatments. Seventy-nine autoimmune disease patients with symptoms suggestive of infections or disease flares were collected by retrospective chart review. The patients were later classified into two groups, disease flare and infection. C-reactive protein (CRP) and serum procalcitonin (PCT) levels were measured. The CRP and PCT levels were higher in the infection group than the disease flare group (CRP,11.96 mg/dL ± 9.60 vs 6.42 mg/dL ± 7.01, P = 0.003; PCT, 2.44 ng/mL ± 6.55 vs 0.09 ng/mL ± 0.09, P < 0.001). The area under the ROC curve (AUC; 95% confidence interval) for CRP and PCT was 0.70 (0.58-0.82) and 0.84 (0.75-0.93), which showed a significant difference (P < 0.05). The predicted AUC for the CRP and PCT levels combined was 0.83, which was not significantly different compared to the PCT level alone (P = 0.80). The best cut-off value for CRP was 7.18 mg/dL, with a sensitivity of 71.9% and a specificity of 68.1%. The best cut-off value for PCT was 0.09 ng/mL, with a sensitivity of 81.3% and a specificity of 78.7%. The PCT level had better sensitivity and specificity compared to the CRP level in distinguishing between bacterial infections and disease flares in autoimmune disease patients. The CRP level has no additive value when combined with the PCT level when differentiating bacterial infections from disease flares.     

PCT、CRP动力学评估脓毒血症预后及诊断意义的研究

目的 观察血清降钙素原(PCT)、C反应蛋白(CRP)及其动力学变化,评估其在严重脓毒症/感染性休克患者的诊断及预后价值.方法 本研究采用回顾性分析方法,2014年9月1日至2016年4月30日选择184例ICU中被诊断为严重脓毒症/感染性休克疾病患者,检测入院时血清PCT、CRP水平和治疗后第2,第3和第5天的PCT、CRP水平.结果 通过△PCT、△CRP评估PCT、CRP的动力学在存活者与死亡组中有显著性统计学意(△PCT2/0,P=0.0001;△PCT3/0,P=0.0001;△PCT5/0,P=0.0001;△CRP2/0,P=0.0069;△CRP3/0,P=0.0001;△CRP5/0,P=0.0001),在严重脓毒症和感染性休克组中也存在显著差异(PCT5,P=0.007;△PCT5/0,P=0.007).受试者工作特征曲线(ROC)模型显示,△PCT3/0(AUC=0.721)、△PCT5/0(AUC=0.77)、△CRP5/0(AUC=0.766)水平判断严重脓毒症/感染性休克患者预后有较好的临床意义.△PCT5/0 (0.619)对严重脓毒症或感染性休克有一定的辅助诊断效果,其在ROC曲线上灵敏度、特异性均较高的临界点为0.624,所以,以第5天的血清△PCT5/0水平＞0.624可作为预测感染性休克的临界点.结论 血清中PCT、CRP对严重脓毒症/感染性休克早期有较好的临床诊断及预后价值,其动力学研究可以提高对严重脓毒症/感染性休克诊断及预后评估的敏感性及准确性.     

联合检测C反应蛋白和降钙素原在创伤后脓毒症患者早期预警中的作用

目的评估血清C反应蛋白(CRP)和降钙素原(PCT)联合检测对创伤后脓毒症患者的预警价值。方法纳入严重创伤患者235例,其中110例脓毒症患者和125例非脓毒症患者。采集入院24 h内血样,检测血清中CRP和PCT。采用ROC曲线比较CRP和PCT对创伤后脓毒症的预警价值,同时采用NRI和IDI分析联合使用后的提高能力。结果脓毒症患者血清CRP和PCT水平均显著高于非脓毒症患者(P<0.001),ROC分析显示血清CRP和PCT的AUC分别为0.766(0.707~0.819)和0.744(0.684~0.799);将CRP和PCT联合较单指标预警创伤脓毒症的AUC提高了5.1%,7.3%。NRI和IDI分析结果证实PCT和CPR的联合使用较单独使用的预警效能显著提高(P<0.001)。结论CRP和PCT对严重创伤后脓毒症发生风险具有早期预警作用,二者联合能够显著提高早期预警能力。     

Serum caspase-cleaved cytokeratin-18 fragment as a prognostic biomarker in hematological patients with febrile neutropenia

The study aim was to determine the benefit of the measurement of serum caspase-cleaved cytokeratin-18 (CK-18) fragment as a prognostic marker of febrile neutropenia (FN) in hematological patients. The study population consisted of 86 consecutive patients with FN who received intensive chemotherapy for hematological malignancy at the adult hematology ward of Kuopio University Hospital. Twenty-three patients (27%) had acute myeloid leukemia, and 63 patients (73%) were autologous stem cell transplant recipients. Serum caspase-cleaved CK-18 fragment M30, C-reactive protein (CRP) and procalcitonin (PCT) were measured at the onset of FN (d0), on day 1 (d1), and on day 2 (d2). Eight patients (9%) developed severe sepsis, including three patients with septic shock. Eighteen patients (21%) had a blood culture-positive infection. Serum CK-18 fragment peaked on the first day after fever onset in patients with severe sepsis. Higher CK-18 level was associated with severe sepsis, intensive care unit treatment, and fatal outcome, but not with blood culture positivity. In ROC curve analysis, d1 serum CK-18 fragment predicted severe sepsis with an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.767, CRP with an AUC of 0.764, and PCT with an AUC of 0.731. On d2, the best predictive capacity was observed for CRP with an AUC of 0.832. The optimal cutoff of caspase-cleaved CK-18 fragment M30 for predicting severe sepsis was 205 U/L on d1. In hematological patients, serum CK-18 fragment was found to be a potential prognostic marker of severe sepsis at early stages of FN.

     

脂多糖结合蛋白在脓毒症患者诊断和预后预测中的作用

目的:探讨脂多糖结合蛋白(LBP)在脓毒症患者诊断和预后预测中的作用。方法:挑选ICU的患者共80名,患者分为全身炎症反应综合征(SIRS)组(阴性对照组)、脓毒症存活组和脓毒症死亡组;所有患者均于进入ICU后24 h内采集血清样本并进行APACHEⅡ评分分析;另挑选10名健康志愿者血清作为正常对照组;ELISA检测各组样本血清LBP、C反应蛋白(CRP)和降钙素原(PCT)浓度;并以APACHEⅡ评分、血清LBP、CRP和PCT浓度对脓毒症诊断和预后预测做ROC曲线,评价LBP在脓毒症患者诊断和预后预测中的作用。结果:与SIRS组相比,脓毒症组的APACHEⅡ评分、血清LBP、CRP、PCT浓度均升高(P0.05);与脓毒症存活组相比,死亡组的APACHEⅡ评分和血清LBP浓度升高(P0.05),而血清CRP和PCT浓度在脓毒症存活组与死亡组之间的差异无统计学意义;LBP血清浓度高于26.84 mg/L时诊断脓毒症的敏感性和特异性分别为97.1%和95.9%;LBP血清浓度高于54.16 mg/L时预测脓毒症预后的敏感性和特异性分别为85.2%和80.0%。结论:与传统的脓毒症生物标志物CRP、PCT相比,LBP在脓毒症的诊断和预测方面都具有更好的效果。     

Clinical significance of sirtuin 1 level in sepsis: correlation with disease risk,severity, and mortality risk

This study aimed to investigate the value of sirtuin 1 (SIRT1) in differentiating sepsis patients from healthy controls (HCs), and its correlation with inflammation, disease severity, as well as prognosis in sepsis patients. Serum samples were collected from 180 sepsis patients and 180 age- and gender-matched HCs. The SIRT1 level in the serum samples was detected by enzyme-linked immunoassay. The clinical data of the sepsis patients were documented, and their disease severity scores and 28-day mortality rate were assessed. SIRT1 was decreased in sepsis patients compared with HCs, and the receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) showed that SIRT1 distinguished sepsis patients from HCs (area under the curve (AUC): 0.901; 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.868-0.934). In sepsis patients, SIRT1 negatively correlated with serum creatinine (Scr), white blood cells (WBC), C-reactive protein (CRP), acute physiology, and chronic health evaluation II (APACHE II) score, and sequential organ failure assessment (SOFA) score, while it positively correlated with albumin. No correlation of SIRT1 with primary infection site or primary organism was observed. Furthermore, SIRT1 was reduced in 28-day non-survivors compared with 28-day survivors, and subsequent ROC showed that SIRT1 predicted 28-day mortality of sepsis patients (AUC: 0.725; 95% CI: 0.651-0.800), and its prognostic value was not inferior to Scr, albumin, WBC, and CRP, but was less than SOFA score and APACHE II score. In conclusion, measurement of serum SIRT1 might assist with the optimization of disease assessment, management strategies, and survival surveillance in sepsis patients.     

Positive Maternal C-Reactive Protein Predicts Neonatal Sepsis

Purpose

To evaluate the diagnostic performance of maternal inflammatory marker: C-reactive protein (CRP) in predicting early onset neonatal sepsis (that occurring within 72 hours after birth).

Materials and Methods

126 low birth weight newborns (gestation 32±3.2 wk, birth weight 1887±623 g) and their mothers were included. Neonates were divided into sepsis group (n=51) including both proven (positive blood culture) and suspected (negative blood culture but with more than 3 abnormal clinical signs), and controls (n=75). Mothers were subgrouped into CRP positive ≥1.22 mg/dL (n=48) and CRP negative <1.22 mg/dL (n=78) group, determined by Receiver Operating Characteristic curves, and odds ratio was calculated for neonatal sepsis according to maternal condition.

Results

Maternal CRP was significantly higher in neonatal sepsis group than in control (3.55±2.69 vs. 0.48±0.31 mg/dL, p=0.0001). Maternal CRP (cutoff value >1.22 mg/dL) had sensitivity 71% and specificity 84% for predicting neonatal sepsis. Maternal CRP positive group had more neonatal sepsis than CRP negative group (71% vs. 29%, p<0.001). Odds ratio of neonatal sepsis in maternal CRP positive group versus CRP negative group was 10.68 (95% confidence interval: 4.313-26.428, p<0.001).

Conclusion

The risk of early onset neonatal sepsis significantly increased in the case of positive maternal CRP (≥1.22 mg/dL). In newborn of CRP positive mother, the clinician may be alerted to earlier evaluation for possible neonatal infection prior to development of sepsis.     

Blood biomarkers in early bacterial infection and sepsis diagnostics in feverish young children

Background and objectives: While most feverish children have self-limiting diseases, 5-10% develop a serious and potentially life-threatening bacterial infection (BI). Due to potential risk, prompt recognition of BI and sepsis in the pediatric emergency department (PED) remains a clinical priority. The aim of the study was to evaluate the role of certain cytokines and chemokines separately and in combination with routine blood tests in early BI and sepsis diagnostics at PED. Materials and methods: We prospectively studied children younger than 5 presenting to the PED with fever lasting for under 12 hours with high risk for serious illness. Clinical data, routine blood analysis, and inflammatory cytokine and chemokine panels were evaluated for their diagnostic abilities. Two separate analyses were carried out on the patients'' data: one contrasting BI and viral infection (VI) groups, the other comparing septic and non-septic patients. Results: The sample comprised 70 patients (40% with BI). IL-2 was found to be the most specific biomarker to identify BI with specificity of 100%. The best discriminative ability was demonstrated by combining IL-2, IL-6, CRP, WBC, and neutrophil count: AUC 0.942 (95% Cl 0.859-0.984). IL-10 exhibited a greater AUC (0.837. 95% CI: 0.730-0.915 p<0.05) than CRP (0.807. 95% CI: 0.695-0.895 p<0.05) when predicting sepsis and showed high specificity (98%) and moderate sensitivity (75%). Conclusions: IL-6 and IL-2 could increase the diagnostic ability of routine blood tests for predicting BI, as IL-10 raises specificity for recognizing sepsis in the early hours of disease onset.     

Diagnostic value of procalcitonin and C reactive protein for infection and sepsis in elderly patients

Background/aimBiomarkers are useful for diagnosing infection and sepsis in adults, but data are limited in elderly patients. Furthermore, clinical symptoms of infection in elderly patients are usually atypical or unclear. We aimed to assess the usefulness of PCT, CRP, and WBC in distinguishing elderly patients infected with sepsis from infected without sepsis and those with no-infection. We also aimed to find a cut-off value for diagnosing sepsis and infection without sepsis in elderly critically ill patients.Materials and methodsIn this single-center and prospective observational study, patients older than 65 years were enrolled. Serum levels of PCT, CRP, and WBC were measured within 24 h. Patients were allocated into sepsis (S), infected without sepsis (IWS), and no-infection (NI) groups. Data were analyzed with Mann–Whitney U test and Kruskal–Wallis test. ResultsWe analyzed 188 patients with a mean age of 77.05 ± 7.4 in the study; 95 (50.5%) of them were women. Sixty-four (34%) of whom were classified as IWS, 29 (15%) as S, and 95 (50.5%) as NI group. There were significant differences in the PCT, CRP levels between the IWS and NI, S and NI (p < 0.001, p < 0.001, p < 0.001, p < 0.01, respectively). The PCT levels were significantly different when the NI group was compared to IWS (p < 0.001) and S (p < 0.001) groups. The CRP levels were also different when the NI group was compared to both IWS (p < 0.001) and S (p < 0.001). The PCT cut-off values were 0.485 μ/L and 1.245 μg/L for the discrimination of patients with IWS and S, respectively. The cut-off values of CRP level were 59.45 mg/L and 57.50 mg/L for infected without sepsis and sepsis, respectively. ConclusionPCT was found to be a more valuable marker than CRP and WBC for the discrimination of elderly patients with infected without sepsis and sepsis.     

流式细胞术检测中性粒细胞CD64指数在鉴别早期感染性疾病中的临床价值分析

目的 分析流式细胞术检测中性粒细胞CD64指数在鉴别早期感染性疾病中的临床价值.方法 选取我院2015年10月至2017年4月期间收治的感染性疾病患者200例,根据感染严重程度分为早期局部感染组(n=120)和脓毒血症组(n=80),另选同期入院体检的健康志愿者50例作为对照组.所有研究对象均于入院后24 ～ 48h内及治疗前进行血常规WBC检测和CRP测定,采用流式细胞仪多参数分析中性粒细胞CD64 (MESF)及中性粒细胞CD64指数,通过绘制受试者工作特征(ROC)曲线计算中性粒细胞CD64指数鉴别早期感染性疾病的灵敏度和特异性.结果 对照组、早期局部感染组、脓毒血症组中性粒细胞CD64及血清CRP、WBC水平依次显著升高,各组差异有统计学意义(P＜0.05).早期局部感染组中性粒细胞CD64指数与血浆CRP、WBC水平呈正相关(P＜0.05).中性粒细胞CD64指数、CRP、WBC的曲线下面积分别为0.896、0.757、0.629(P均＜0.05);与CRP、WBC相比,中性粒细胞CD64指数鉴别早期感染性疾病的灵敏度、特异性为97.39％、90.59％明显升高.结论 分析外周血中性粒细胞CD64指数对于早期感染性疾病的鉴别诊断有重要价值,其诊断效能明显优于血常规WBC和CRP检测.     

Risk Factors for Serious Bacterial Infection in Febrile Young Infants in a Community Referral Hospital

Differentiation of serious bacterial infection (SBI) from self-limiting viral illness in febrile infants younger than three months is a significant challenge for clinicians. We aimed to assess the risk factors for SBI in febrile infants. Data were obtained from 221 infants younger than three months who visited a single community referral hospital for fever and underwent a complete sepsis workup between August 2003 and July 2006. The causes of fever were febrile illness without a documented cause (FISDC, 65%), urinary tract infection (UTI, 12%), aseptic meningitis (12%), bacteremia (4%), bacterial meningitis (2%). Cerebrospinal fluid enterovirus polymerase chain reaction was positive in 28% of FISDC and 48% of aseptic meningitis cases. When UTI was excluded, the risk factors for SBI were 1) C-reactive protein (CRP) level of ≥1.87 mg/dL and 2) fevers of ≥38.9℃. The specificity and negative predictive values of risk factors 1) and 2) for the diagnosis of SBI were 94% and 95%, respectively. We concluded that enteroviral infection may be a major cause of febrile episodes in infants younger than three months. If UTI could be excluded, the presence of CRP levels ≥1.87 mg/dL and fevers of ≥38.9℃ can be used as criteria to rule out SBI in these infants.     

痛风患者血尿酸和炎性因子水平变化及相关性分析

目的 探讨痛风患者血尿酸水平以及炎性因子C反应蛋白（CRP）、白细胞介素-6（IL-6）、肿瘤坏死因子-α（TNF-α）水平的变化,并对其进行相关性分析。方法 选择2018年5月~2019年2月我院收治的52例痛风患者作为患者组,选取同期52名健康受试者作为对照组。检测两组受试者的血尿酸及CRP、IL-6、TNF-α的水平;采用Pearson相关分析评估血尿酸与炎性因子水平的相关性;采用ROC曲线法评估CRP、IL-6、TNF-α联合血尿酸对痛风诊断的曲线下方面积（AUC）、灵敏度和特异性。结果 患者组血尿酸、CRP、IL-6、TNF-α水平均高于对照组,差异具有统计学意义（P＜0.05）。血尿酸与CRP（r=0.193,P=0.050）、IL-6（r=0.225,P=0.021）、TNF-α（r=0.342,P=0.000）的水平均呈正相关关系。CRP、IL-6、TNF-α联合血尿酸水平诊断痛风的AUC面积分别为0.824（灵敏度为86.30%,特异性为67.30%）、0.811（灵敏度为80.40%,特异性为73.10%）、0.989（灵敏度为100.00%,特异性为96.20%）。结论 痛风患者升高的血尿酸水平可能与循环中的炎性因子密切相关,且炎性因子的水平对于痛风的诊断具有一定的指导意义。     

Correlation of interleukin-6, serum lactate, and C-reactive protein to inflammation, complication, and outcome during the surgical course of patients with acute abdomen

In the present scenario, doctors have to rely on radiological methods for diagnosis of acute abdomen in addition to their clinical skill. The use of serum markers for assessing the outcome of such patients is still debatable. Our aim was to evaluate whether the combined use of serum lactate, interleukin (IL)-6, and C-reactive protein (CRP) is able to simultaneously establish both the septic status and the prognosis of acute abdomen. Ninety-nine patients undergoing surgery for acute abdomen were taken up for the study. The patients were divided into 4 groups based on the level of sepsis. Serum lactate, IL-6, and CRP were determined in the serum of all the subjects. It was found that serum lactate determination, using the cutoff value < 3.9 mM, had a high sensitivity (100%) and specificity (83%) in differentiating patients with severe sepsis from those with sepsis. IL-6 came next with a sensitivity of 87% and a specificity of 81%. The AUC for serum lactate (0.922), IL-6 (0.912), and CRP (0.719) in differentiating between patients with severe sepsis and those with sepsis also proves the superiority of serum lactate and IL-6. The combined use of serum lactate and IL-6 would allow us to simultaneously establish the prognosis of patients with acute abdomen (r(2) = 0.368, P = 0.008). The combined use of serum lactate and IL-6 is useful in simultaneously establishing both the severity of sepsis and, hence, the prognosis of acute abdomen.     

The Role of Serum Procalcitonin Levels in Predicting Ascitic Fluid Infection in Hospitalized Cirrhotic and Non-cirrhotic Patients

Objective: To determine the role of serum procalcitonin levels in predicting ascites infection in hospitalized cirrhotic and non-cirrhotic patients.Methods: A total of 101 patients (mean age: 63.4±1.3, 66.3% were males) hospitalized due to cirrhosis (n=88) or malignancy related (n=13) ascites were included in this study. Spontaneous bacterial peritonitis (SBP, 19.8%), culture-negative SBP (38.6%), bacterascites (4.9%), sterile ascites (23.8%) and malign ascites (12.9%) groups were compared in terms of procalcitonin levels in predicting ascites infection. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were used to evaluate the diagnostic performance of procalcitonin levels and predicting outcome of procalcitonin levels was compared with C-reactive protein (CRP).Results: Culture positivity was determined in 26.7% of overall population. Serum procalcitonin levels were determined to be significantly higher in patients with positive bacterial culture in ascitic fluid compared to patients without culture positivity (median (min-max): 4.1 (0.2-36.4) vs. 0.4 (0.04-15.8), p<0.001). Using ROC analysis, a serum procalcitonin level of <0.61 ng/mL in SBP (area under curve (AUC): 0.981, CI 95%: 0.000-1.000, p<0.001), <0.225 ng/mL in culture-negative SBP (AUC: 0.743, CI 95%: 0.619-0.867, p<0.001), <0.42 ng/mL in SBP and culture-negative SBP patients (AUC: 0.824, CI 95%: 0.732-0.916, p<0.001), and <1.12 ng/mL in bacterascites (AUC: 0.837, CI 95%: 0.000-1.000, p=0.019) were determined to accurately rule out the diagnosis of bacterial peritonitis. Predictive power of serum procalcitonin levels in SBP + culture-negative SBP group (AUCs: 0.824 vs 0.622, p=0.004, Fig 4), culture-positive SBP (AUCs: 0.981 vs 0.777, p=0.006, Fig 5) and (although less powerfull) in culture-negative SBP (AUCs: 0.743 vs 0.543, p=0.02, Fig 6) were found significantly higher than CRP.Conclusion: According to our findings determination of serum procalcitonin levels seems to provide satisfactory diagnostic accuracy in differentiating bacterial infections in hospitalized patients with liver cirrhosis related ascites.     

Circulating microRNA-339-5p and -21 in plasma as an early detection predictors of lung adenocarcinoma

Background

Many studies have shown that differentially expressed miRs in body fluids can serve as biomarkers in non-invasive detection of the cancers. However, the clinical significance of plasma miRs in the diagnosis of lung adenocarcinoma (LA) is still not clear. Therefore, we examined the LA-specific miRs in plasma, which could be utilized to diagnosis and monitor LA in routine clinical practice.

Optimized approach to decision fusion of heterogeneous data for breast cancer diagnosis

As more diagnostic testing options become available to physicians, it becomes more difficult to combine various types of medical information together in order to optimize the overall diagnosis. To improve diagnostic performance, here we introduce an approach to optimize a decision-fusion technique to combine heterogeneous information, such as from different modalities, feature categories, or institutions. For classifier comparison we used two performance metrics: The receiving operator characteristic (ROC) area under the curve [area under the ROC curve (AUC)] and the normalized partial area under the curve (pAUC). This study used four classifiers: Linear discriminant analysis (LDA), artificial neural network (ANN), and two variants of our decision-fusion technique, AUC-optimized (DF-A) and pAUC-optimized (DF-P) decision fusion. We applied each of these classifiers with 100-fold cross-validation to two heterogeneous breast cancer data sets: One of mass lesion features and a much more challenging one of microcalcification lesion features. For the calcification data set, DF-A outperformed the other classifiers in terms of AUC (p < 0.02) and achieved AUC=0.85 +/- 0.01. The DF-P surpassed the other classifiers in terms of pAUC (p < 0.01) and reached pAUC=0.38 +/- 0.02. For the mass data set, DF-A outperformed both the ANN and the LDA (p < 0.04) and achieved AUC=0.94 +/- 0.01. Although for this data set there were no statistically significant differences among the classifiers' pAUC values (pAUC=0.57 +/- 0.07 to 0.67 +/- 0.05, p > 0.10), the DF-P did significantly improve specificity versus the LDA at both 98% and 100% sensitivity (p < 0.04). In conclusion, decision fusion directly optimized clinically significant performance measures, such as AUC and pAUC, and sometimes outperformed two well-known machine-learning techniques when applied to two different breast cancer data sets.     

Does C‐reactive protein independently predict mortality in adult community‐acquired bacteremia patients with known sepsis severity?

We evaluated whether sepsis severity and C‐reactive protein (CRP) level on admission prognostically corroborated or annulled each other in adult patients with incident community‐acquired bacteremia (Funen, Denmark, 2000–2008). We used logistic regression and area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) to evaluate 30‐day mortality in four models: (i) age, gender, comorbidity, bacteria, and ward. (ii) Model 1 and sepsis severity. (iii) Model 1 and CRP. (iv) Model 1, sepsis severity, and CRP. Altogether, 416 of 1999 patients died within 30 days. CRP independently predicted 30‐day mortality [Model 4, odds ratio (95% CIs) for 100 mg/L: 1.16 (1.06–1.27)], but it did not contribute to the AUC (Model 2 vs Model 4: p = 0.31). In the 963 non‐severe sepsis patients, CRP independently predicted 30‐day mortality [Model 4: 1.42 (1.20–1.69)] and it increased the AUC (Model 2 vs Model 4: p = 0.06), thus CRP contributed as much as sepsis severity to prognosis.     

白细胞介素-6和C反应蛋白联合诊断预测开放性胸部创伤患者预后的临床研究

目的:探究IL-6和CRP水平联合诊断应用于胸部创伤患者预后的预测价值.方法:纳入本院200例胸部创伤患者,检测比较不同创伤程度胸部创伤患者外周血中IL-6、CRP的表达水平,分析IL-6、CRP水平与预后结局的关系,并用ROC曲线来检验IL-6、CRP单独和联合应用对患者预后结局的预测价值.结果:IL-6、CRP水平...     

Evaluation of tumor necrosis factor-α, interleukin-6 and C-reactive protein plasma levels as predictors of bacteremia in patients presenting signs of sepsis without shock

Objective: To evaluate the sensitivity of interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) plasma measurement to detect bacteremia in patients presenting sepsis signs, and to evaluate the potential benefit of such measurement in terms of early antimicrobial therapy initiation.
Method: Plasma was obtained from 166 hospitalized patients for whom blood cultures were drawn for sepsis. Clinical data and antimicrobial therapies were noted. IL-6, TNF and C-reactive protein (CRP) were measured. The sensitivities of these markers were retrospectively compared with the accuracy of the attending physician in initiating empirical antimicrobial therapy. The setting was an 850-bed university hospital.
Results: Thirty-four bacteremias and 69 non-bacteremic infections were noted. In 63 others, no infection was documented. Median (range) IL-6 plasma levels in the three groups of patients were 462 (15–50 850), 189 (<15–38 300) and 91 (<10–13 750) pg/mL, respectively ( p <0.01). The corresponding TNF-α plasma levels were 37.5 (<15–2400), 15 (<15–240) and 15 (<15–200) pg/mL, respectively ( p <0.01). CRP plasma levels were 10.7 (<0.6–30.2), 10.3 (<0.6–34.4) and 7.3 (<0.6–20.9) mg/dL, respectively ( p =0.12). With respect to these three parameters, IL-6 and TNF-α appear better than CRP for predicting bacteremia. Clinical features resulted in starting empirical antimicrobial therapy in only 62% of the bacteremic patients. On the other hand, 68% of these bacteremic patients had high IL-6 plasma levels (>200 pg/mL). A combination of clinical features and high IL-6 levels would have permitted early treatment for 82% of the bacteremic patients.
Conclusions: IL-6 and TNF-α thus appear to be useful and earlier markers of bacteremia in septic patients. By contrast, CRP is neither sensitive nor specific in this setting.