B-type natriuretic levels in critically ill patients: critically misleading?

Although B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) has been used for the diagnosis of congestive heart failure in many clinical settings, its diagnostic role in critically ill patients remains uncertain. The body of literature suggests that BNP and N-terminal pro-BNP levels are not useful for the diagnosis of systolic or diastolic heart failure in the critically ill, including in patients with brain hemorrhage, due to poor specificity. However, these cardiac peptides may have a more promising prognostic role in this patient population.     

Biomarkers in the critically ill patient: procalcitonin

Infection and/or sepsis biomarkers should help to make the diagnosis and thus initiate therapy earlier, help to differentiate between infectious and sterile inflammation, allow the use of more-specific antimicrobials, shorten the time of antimicrobial use, and ideally identify distinct phenotypes that may benefit from specific adjunctive sepsis therapies. Procalcitonin (PCT) was proposed as a sepsis and infection marker more than 15 years ago. Meanwhile, PCT has been evaluated in various clinical settings. In this review the present use of PCT on the ICU and in critically ill patients is summarized, included it's role for diagnosis of severe sepsis and septic shock and antibiotic stewardship with PCT.     

降钙素原在危重患者败血症诊断中的意义

目的　探讨危重患者败血症早期快速诊断的可靠方法和降钙素原对危重患者败血症诊断的临床意义。方法　采用免疫发光法 (ILMA)对 12 0例中疑有败血症的危重患者测定血清降钙素原 (PCT) ,结合C反应蛋白 (CRP)测定和血培养结果进行分析。结果　PCT阳性 4 9例 ,CRP阳性 17例 ,血培养阳性 12例。感染灶组中PCT与CRP阳性率比较有明显差异 (P <0 .0 5 ) ;伴有多脏器功能障碍综合征与感染灶组比较 ,PCT阳性率有显著性差异 (P <0 .0 5 )。结论　PCT可以作为危重患者败血症早期诊断的指标 ,其动态变化亦可作为判断败血症预后的指标。     

Clinical value of procalcitonin in critically ill patients infected by SARS-CoV-2

Background Blood procalcitonin (PCT) levels usually increase during infectious diseases and might be helpful to differentiate bacterial from non-bacterial origin. COVID-19 patients could present co-infections at initial presentation in the Emergency Department and nosocomial infections during stay in the ICU. However, the published literature has not established whether PCT changes could aid in the diagnosis of infectious complication during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods Retrospective, single-center, cohort study, including COVID-19 patients admitted between March and May 2020. The data were prospectively collected for department purposes; laboratory results were collected automatically at admission and during the whole patient admission. Results 56 patients were analyzed (female 32%, male 68%), 35 were admitted to ICU, and 21 received general ward care. 21 ICU patients underwent mechanical ventilation (88%), and 9 died during admission (26%). Non-survivors had higher initial blood PCT levels than survivors at ICU admission (p.     

休克患者血浆降钙素原的早期测定及其意义

目的　评价血浆降钙素原 (procalcitonin ,PCT)对脓毒性休克患者早期诊断价值及其临床意义。方法　抽取 4 0例休克患者外周血标本 ,同时做普通血培养和PCT -Q检验。结果　两种方法有明显的差异 (χ2 =14 2 1,P <0 0 1) ,PCT -Q检验法灵敏性和特异性高。结论　PCT -Q检验法较普通血培养法灵敏 ,对休克的病因诊断及临床治疗具有指导意义     

Serum procalcitonin measurement contribution to the early diagnosis of candidemia in critically ill patients

Background Candidemia is a life-threatening infection in the ICU whose prognosis is highly dependent on the stage at which it is recognized. Procalcitonin (PCT) levels have been shown to accurately distinguish between bacteremia and noninfectious inflammatory states in critically ill patients with clinical signs of sepsis. Little is known about the accuracy of PCT for the diagnosis of candidemia in this setting.Setting A medical intensive care unit in a teaching hospital.Patients and methods Review of the medical records of every non-neutropenic patient with either bacteremia or candidemia and clinical sepsis in whom PCT dosage at the onset of infection was available between May 2004 and December 2005.Results Fifty episodes of either bacteremia (n = 35) or candidemia (n = 15) were included. PCT levels were found to be markedly higher in patients with bacteremia than in those with candidemia. Moreover, a low PCT value was found to be an independent predictor of candidemia in the study population. According to the calculation of the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve, PCT was found to be accurate in distinguishing between candidemia and bacteremia (0.96 [0.03]). A PCT level of higher than 5.5 ng/ml yields a 100% negative predictive value and a 65.2% positive predictive value for candidemia-related sepsis.Conclusion A high PCT value in a critically ill non-neutropenic patient with clinical sepsis is unlikely in the setting of candidemia.     

Arterial carboxyhemoglobin level and outcome in critically ill patients

OBJECTIVE: Arterial carboxyhemoglobin is elevated in patients with critical illness. It is an indicator of the endogenous production of carbon monoxide by the enzyme heme oxygenase, which modulates the response to oxidant stress. The objective was to explore the hypothesis that arterial carboxyhemoglobin level is associated with inflammation and survival in patients requiring cardiothoracic intensive care. DESIGN: Prospective, observational study. SETTING: A cardiothoracic intensive care unit. PATIENTS: All patients admitted over a 15-month period. INTERVENTIONS: None. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Arterial carboxyhemoglobin, bilirubin, and standard biochemical, hematologic, and physiologic markers of inflammation were measured in 1,267 patients. Associations were sought between levels of arterial carboxyhemoglobin, markers of the inflammatory response, and clinical outcome. Intensive care unit mortality was associated with lower minimum and greater maximal carboxyhemoglobin levels (p < .0001 and p < .001, respectively). After adjustment for age, gender, illness severity, and other relevant variables, a lower minimum arterial carboxyhemoglobin was associated with an increased risk of death from all causes (odds risk of death, 0.391; 95% confidence interval, 0.190-0.807; p = .011). Arterial carboxyhemoglobin correlated with markers of the inflammatory response. CONCLUSIONS: Both low minimum and high maximum levels of arterial carboxyhemoglobin were associated with increased intensive care mortality. Although the heme oxygenase system is protective, excessive induction may be deleterious. This suggests that there may be an optimal range for heme oxygenase-1 induction.     

Longitudinal changes in procalcitonin in a heterogeneous group of critically ill patients*

OBJECTIVE:: The utility of procalcitonin for the diagnosis of infection in the critical care setting has been extensively investigated with conflicting results. Herein, we report procalcitonin values relative to baseline patient characteristics, presence of shock, intensive care unit time course, infectious status, and Gram stain of infecting organism. DESIGN:: Prospective, multicenter, observational study of critically ill patients admitted to intensive care unit for >24 hrs. SETTING:: Three tertiary care intensive care units. PATIENTS:: All consenting patients admitted to three mixed medical-surgical intensive care units. Patients who had elective surgery, overdoses, and who were expected to stay <24 hrs were excluded. INTERVENTIONS:: Patients were followed prospectively to ascertain the presence of prevalent (present at admission) or incident (developed during admission) infections and clinical outcomes. Procalcitonin levels were measured daily for 10 days and were analyzed as a function of the underlying patient characteristics, presence of shock, time of infection, and pathogen isolated. MAIN RESULTS:: Five hundred ninety-eight patients were enrolled. Medical and surgical infected cohorts had similar baseline procalcitonin values (3.0 [0.7-15.3] vs. 3.7 [0.6-9.8], p = .68) and peak procalcitonin (4.5 [1.0-22.9] vs. 5.0 [0.9-16.0], p = .91). Infected patients were sicker than their noninfected counterparts (Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II 22.9 vs. 19.3, p < .001); those with infection at admission had a trend toward higher peak procalcitonin values than did those whose infection developed in the intensive care unit (4.9 vs. 1.4, p = .06). The presence of shock was significantly associated with elevations in procalcitonin in cohorts who were and were not infected (both groups p < .003 on days 1-5). CONCLUSIONS:: Procalcitonin dynamics were similar between surgical and medical cohorts. Shock had an association with higher procalcitonin values independent of the presence of infection. Trends in differences in procalcitonin values were seen in patients who had incident vs. prevalent infections.     

降钙素原在危重病患者导管相关性血行感染中的早期诊断价值

目的:探讨降钙素原(procalcitonin,PCT)在危重病患者中心静脉导管相关性血行感染(catheter related bloodstream infections,CRBSI)中的早期诊断价值.方法:对浙江医院55例中心静脉导管置管后怀疑CRBSI的危重病患者进行前瞻性研究,入组当天采集血样分析PCT水平和同时留取血培养和导管标本.结果:25例患者(45.5%)符合CRBIS诊断标准,CRBIS组PCT水平3.98(3.00～5.46)V,μg/L,明显高于非CRBIS组的0.88(0.50～1.51)μg/L(P<0.001);革兰阴性细菌感染CRBIS患者的PCT水平较革兰阳性感染者高(P=0.042);用ROC曲线分析示PCT理想的阳性和阴性预测CRBIS水平为3μg/L,该临界值的敏感性为76.0%、特异性为96.7%、阴性预测值为87.0%、阳性预测值为82.8%.结论:PCT在早期诊断CRBSI中具有较高的特异性和阴性预测值,具有一定的临床价值.     

降钙素原对重症患者细菌感染预后的预测价值

目的 探讨血清降钙素原(PCT)对重症患者细菌感染性疾病预后评估和病情严重程度判断的价值.方法 采用前瞻性方法进行研究,选取2012年2月至2012年11月期间收住南通大学附属医院重症医学科符合入选条件的116例细菌感染性疾病患者为研究对象,采用免疫色谱法检测入院后24 h内的血清PCT水平,记录患者24 h急性生理学与慢性健康状况Ⅱ(APACHEⅡ)评分.根据28 d临床结局,分为死亡组(36例)和存活组(80例),用成组t检验或秩和检验比较两组间PCT、APACHEⅡ评分的差异,采用Spearman's相关检验分析血清PCT水平与APACHEⅡ评分的相关性,用受试者工作特征曲线(ROC)下面积(AUC)评估PCT单独应用及联合PCT和APACHEⅡ评分预测28 d生存情况的效能.用U检验对PCT和APACHEⅡ评分预测28 d生存情况的效能进行比较.结果 死亡组PCT水平明显高于存活组[5.38 (2.08,25) vs.0.23 (1.00,2.12)] (Z=5.598,P＜0.001),死亡组APACHEⅡ评分亦显著高于存活组(24.32±6.72) vs.(16.05±7.24),t=6.148,P＜0.01.PCT与APACHEⅡ评分存在显著正相关(r=0.388,P＜0.001),PCT和APACHEⅡ评分预测重症患者细菌感染性疾病28 d生存情况的AUC分别为0.804和0.792,PCT的AUC值高于APACHEⅡ评分,但差异无统计学意义(U=0.2073,P=0.802).联合PCT和APACHEⅡ评分预测28 d生存情况的AUC较单一指标高,为0.817,敏感度90.7％,特异度75.2％,均优于单一指标的预测效能.结论 血清PCT能反映重症患者细菌感染性疾病病情严重程度及预后,是预测28 d生存情况的有效指标,联合PCT检测和APACHEⅡ评分可提高预测效能.     

RIFLE classification can predict short-term prognosis in critically ill cirrhotic patients

OBJECTIVE: End-stage liver disease is frequently complicated by renal function disturbances. Cirrhotic patients with renal failure admitted to intensive care units (ICUs) have high mortality rates. This study analyzed the outcomes of critically ill cirrhotic patients and identified the association between prognosis and RIFLE (risk of renal failure, injury to kidney, failure of kidney function, loss of kidney function, and end-stage renal failure) classification, in comparison with other five scoring systems. DESIGN: Prospective, clinical study. SETTING: Ten-bed specialized hepatogastroenterology ICU in a university hospital in Taiwan. PATIENTS AND PARTICIPANTS: One hundred and thirty-four cirrhotic patients consecutively admitted to ICU during a 1.5-year period. INTERVENTIONS: Thirty-two demographic, clinical and laboratory variables were analyzed as predictors of survival. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Overall hospital mortality was 65.7%. There was a progressive and significant increase (chi2 for trend: p<0.001) in mortality based on RIFLE classification severity. Multiple logistic regression analysis indicated that RIFLE classification and Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score on the first day of ICU admission were independent risk factors for hospital mortality. By using the areas under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUROC), the RIFLE category and SOFA both indicated a good discriminative power (AUROC 0.837+/-0.036 and 0.917+/-0.025; p<0.001). Cumulative survival rates at 6-month follow-up differed significantly (p<0.05) for non-ARF vs. RIFLE-R, RIFLE-I, and RIFLE-F. CONCLUSION: Both SOFA and RIFLE category showed high discriminative power in predicting hospital mortality in critically ill patients with cirrhosis. The RIFLE classification is a simple and easily applied evaluative tool with good prognostic abilities.     

Predictive value of procalcitonin and interleukin 6 in critically ill patients with suspected sepsis

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the performance of procalcitonin (PCT), interleukin-6 (IL-6), C-reactive protein, leukocyte count, D-dimer, and antithrombin III at onset of septic episode and 24 h later in prediction of hospital mortality in critically ill patients with suspected sepsis. DESIGN AND SETTING: Prospective, cohort study in two university hospital intensive care units. PATIENTS: 61 critically ill patients with suspected sepsis. MEASUREMENTS AND RESULTS: The outcome measure was hospital mortality. Hospital survivors ( n=41) and nonsurvivors ( n=20) differed statistically significantly on day 1 (admission) in PCT, IL-6, SOFA score, and APACHE II score, and 24 h later in PCT, IL-6, and D-dimer values. AT III, CRP, and leukocyte count did not differ. The areas under receiver operating curves showed reasonable discriminative power (>0.75) in predicting hospital mortality only for day 2 IL-6 (0.799) and day 2 PCT (0.777) values which were comparable to that of APACHE II (0.786), and which remained the only independent predictor of mortality. CONCLUSIONS: Admission and day 2 IL-6, and day 2 PCT, and day 2 D-dimer values differed significantly between hospital survivors and nonsurvivors among critically ill patients with suspected sepsis. However, in prediction of hospital mortality, only the discriminative power of day 2 PCT and IL-6 values, and APACHE II was reasonable as judged by AUC analysis (>0.75).     

Serum levels of C-reactive protein and procalcitonin in critically ill patients with cirrhosis of the liver

Concentrations of C-reactive protein (CRP) and procalcitonin (PCT) have been suggested as markers of infection. The liver is believed to be a key source of CRP and PCT. For this reason we assessed the predictive value of these markers in patients with hepatic cirrhosis in a 31-bed university-hospital department of intensive care. Demographic, clinical, laboratory, and microbiologic data were collected prospectively over 9 months. Of 864 patients included in the study, 79 (9%) had hepatic cirrhosis. Patients with cirrhosis were more likely to have a medical than a surgical admission diagnosis (67 vs 47%, P = .03). They also had a higher rate of infection (48 vs 30%, P = .03) and higher mortality (44 vs 17%, P = .01) than did patients without cirrhosis. We detected no differences in CRP and PCT concentrations among patients with cirrhosis and different disease severity as assessed on the basis of Child-Pugh score. The serum CRP concentration (admission 11.2 +/- 4.6 vs 13.0 +/- 5.8, maximum 13.9 +/- 6.4 vs 18.8 +/- 7.3 mg/dL) and PCT (admission 1.3 +/- 0.9 vs 2.0 +/- 1.4, maximum 3.3 +/- 1.8 vs 3.4 +/- 2.1 ng/mL) were slightly lower in infected patients with cirrhosis than in infected patients without cirrhosis, but the differences were not statistically significant. Although the liver is considered the main source of CRP and a source of PCT, serum levels of these acute-phase proteins are not significantly lower in patients with cirrhosis than in other patients. Moreover, the predictive power of CRP and PCT for infection was similar for patients with and without cirrhosis.     

Safety issues that should be considered when mobilizing critically ill patients

Mobilization is often used by physiotherapists for managing critically ill patients with the aim of treatment including improving respiratory function, level of consciousness, functional ability, and psychological well being, and reducing the adverse effects of immobility. In addition, mobilization may decrease the duration of mechanical ventilation and length of ICU or hospital stay. This article provides ICU practitioners with comprehensive guidelines that can be used to assess the safety of mobilizing critically ill patients. The main safety factors that should be addressed include intrinsic factors related to the patient (eg, medical background, cardiovascular and respiratory reserve, and hematological considerations) and factors extrinsic to the patient (eg, patient attachments, environment, and staffing).     

血清降钙素原对重症儿童病情的预测

目的 分析血清降钙素原(procalcitonin,PCT)升高危重儿童的临床资料,探讨降钙素原对重症儿童病情的预测价值.方法 回顾性收集201 1年8月至2012年3月湖南省儿童医院重症监护室收治的入院时PCT升高(PCT ＞0.5 ng/ml)的危重患儿392例,对其临床、病情演变、痰培养、器官功能及预后进行总结和分析.连续变量比较使用t检验、F检验,分类变量应用X2检验,相关性采用Pearson相关分析.结果 血清PCT水平与其他炎症标志物C-反应蛋白(CRP)、白细胞计数(WBC)、中性粒细胞比率(NEUT％)差异具有统计学意义(P＜0.01).痰细菌培养阳性时PCT水平明显升高(P＜0.05),而CRP、WBC、NEUT％变化不明显(P＞0.05).脏器功能损伤时PCT水平明显升高(P＜0.01),PCT测定值越高,发生多个器官功能衰竭的可能性越大.63例死亡患儿入院时PCT水平达到(62.43±70.19) ng/ml,明显高于存活患者(P＜0.01).结论 监测PCT水平不但能快速判定危重患儿是否合并细菌感染,而且能反映患儿是否出现器官功能障碍,还能客观判断病情严重程度及评估患儿预后,对提高重症患儿生存率及改善重症患儿生活质量起到积极作用.