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@#BACKGROUND: Heatstroke has become a common emergency event in hospitals. Procalcitonin (PCT) is used as a biomarker of infection in the emergency department (ED), but its role in rhabdomyolysis (RM) following exertional heatstroke (EHS) remains unclear. METHODS: A retrospective cohort study enrolled patients with EHS from the intensive care unit (ICU). We collected RM biomarkers, inflammation markers, critical disease scores at admission, 24 h, 48 h, and discharge, and 90-day mortality. Correlation analysis, linear regression and curve fitting were used to identify the relationship between PCT and RM. RESULTS: A total of 162 patients were recruited and divided into RM (n=56) and non-RM (n=106) groups. PCT was positively correlated with myoglobin (Mb), acute hepatic injury, disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC), Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score, and Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II (APACHE II) score, with correlation coefficients of 0.214, 0.237, 0.285, 0.454, and 0.368, respectively (all P<0.05). Interestingly, the results of curve fitting revealed a nonlinear relationship between PCT and RM, and a two-piecewise linear regression model showed that PCT was related to RM with an odds ratio of 1.3 and a cut-off of <4.6 ng/mL. Survival analysis revealed that RM was associated with higher mortality compared to non-RM cases (P=0.0093). CONCLUSION: High serum PCT concentrations are associated with RM after EHS in critically ill patients. Elevated PCT concentrations should be interpreted cautiously in patients with EHS in the ED.
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INTRODUCCIÓN. La procalcitonina, es un biomarcador que puede usarse como apoyo diagnóstico en infecciones bacterianas y la monitorización del tratamiento antibiótico, sobre todo en pacientes con sepsis. De ahí que, fue utilizado durante la pandemia COVID-19 OBJETIVO. Determinar los valores de procalcitonina en pacientes con COVID-19 y definir una p osible correlación entre su incremento y vinculación en coinfección o infección secundaria por Klebsiella pneumoniae y Pseudomonas aeruginosa con multidrogo resistencia y resistencia extendida a los antibióticos. MATERIALES Y MÉTODOS. Estudio retrospectivo observacional, descriptivo transversal, realizado del 1 de mayo al 31 de octubre del 2020 en el Hospital de Especialidades Carlos Andrade Marín sobre 7028 pacientes adultos, hospitalizados, con diagnóstico de COVID-19, y resultados de procalcitonina, cuyas muestras de secreción traqueal y/o hemocultivo presentaron desarrollo de Klebsiella pneumoniae y Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Su análisis estadístico fue desarrollado mediante la prueba Chi Cuadrado de Pearson. RESULTADOS. Se recibieron 861 muestras de hemocultivo y 391 de secreción traqueal, obteniéndose: 32% aislamientos de Klebsiella pneumoniae y Pseudomonas aeruginosa multidrogo y extremadamente resistente. Entre los pacientes COVID-19 que fallecieron, 34,4% mostraron incrementos de procalcitonina. Al contrario, entre los pacientes que sobrevivieron sólo en 8,8% se observó incrementos de procalcitonina evidenciándose un vínculo entre el incremento de procalcitonina y mortalidad. CONCLUSIONES. No existe diferencia en relación al incremento en los valores de procalcitonina en pacientes COVID-19 con co-infección o infección secundaria por Klebsiella pneumoniae y Pseudomonas aeruginosa multidrogo y extremadamente resistente y los valores de procalcitonina en pacientes con coinfección e infección secundaria con otro tipo de aislamientos bacterianos.
INTRODUCTION. Procalcitonin is a biomarker that can be used as a diagnostic support in bacterial infections and the monitoring of antibiotic treatment, especially in patients with sepsis. Hence, it was used during the COVID-19 pandemic OBJECTIVE. To determine the values of procalcitonin in patients with COVID-19 and to define a possible correlation between its increase and linkage in co-infection or secondary infection by Klebsiella pneumoniae and Pseudomonas aeruginosa with multidrug resistance and extended resistance to antibiotics. MATERIALS AND METHODS. Retrospective observational, descriptive cross-sectional study, conducted from May 1 to October 31, 2020 at the Hospital de Especialidades Carlos Andrade Marín on 7028 adult patients, hospitalized, with diagnosis of COVID-19, and procalcitonin results, whose tracheal secretion and/or blood culture samples presented development of Klebsiella pneumoniae and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Their statistical analysis was developed using Pearson's Chi-squared test. RESULTS. We received 861 blood culture and 391 tracheal secretion samples, obtaining: 32% isolates of Klebsiella pneumoniae and multidrug-resistant and extremely resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Among the COVID-19 patients who died, 34.4% showed increased procalcitonin levels. On the contrary, among patients who survived, only 8.8% showed increased procalcitonin levels, showing a link between increased procalcitonin levels and mortality. CONCLUSIONS. There is no difference in relation to the increase in procalcitonin values in COVID-19 patients with co-infection or secondary infection by Klebsiella pneumoniae and multidrug-resistant and extremely resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa and procalcitonin values in patients with co-infection and secondary infection with other types of bacterial isolates.
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Humans , Male , Female , Adult , Middle Aged , Pseudomonas aeruginosa , Drug Resistance, Multiple , Coinfection , Procalcitonin , COVID-19 , Klebsiella pneumoniae , Trachea , Biomarkers , Sepsis , Ecuador , Anti-Bacterial AgentsABSTRACT
@#Objective To explore the natural changes of procalcitonin (PCT) in the early period after pediatric cardiac surgery with cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB). Methods A prospective and observational study was done on patients below 3 years of age, who underwent cardiac surgery involving CPB, with the risk adjustment of congenital heart surgery (RACHS) score of 2 to 5 and free from active preoperative infection or inflammatory disease. Blood samples for measurement of PCT, C-reactive protein (CRP) and white blood cell (WBC) were taken before surgery and daily for 7 days in postoperative period. Infections and complications within 7 days after operation were investigated. According to the presence or absence of infection and complications within 7 days after operation, the enrolled children were divided into an infection+complications group, a simple infection group, a simple complication group, and a normal group. Results Finally, 429 children with PICU stay≥ 4 days were enrolled, including 268 males and 161 females, with a median age of 8.0 (0.7, 26.0) months. There were 145 children in the simple infection group, 38 children in the simple complication group, 230 children in the normal group and 16 children in the infection+complications group. The levels of PCT, CRP and WBC were significantly higher after CPB. CRP and WBC peaked on the second postoperative day (POD) and remained higher than normal until POD7. PCT peaked on POD1 and would generally decrease to normal on POD5 if without infection and complications. Age, body weight, RACHS scores, the duration of CPB and aortic cross-clamping time were correlated with PCT level. There was a statistical difference in PCT concentration between the simple infection group and the normal group on POD 3-7 (P<0.01) and a statistical difference between the simple complication group and the normal group on POD 1-7 (P<0.01). A statistical difference was found between the simple infection group and the simple complication group in PCT on POD 1-5 (P<0.05). Conclusion WBC, CRP and PCT significantly increase after CPB in pediatric cardiac surgery patients. The factors influencing PCT concentration include age, weight, RACHS scores, CPB and aortic cross-clamping time, infection and complications.
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Objective:To investigate the correlation of serum pro-gastrin-releasing peptide (ProGRP), sugar chain antigen 242(CA242), procalcitonin(PCT) levels in patients with chronic atrophic gastritis (CAG) with intestinal metaplasia and Helicobacter pylori(Hp) infection and prognosis.Methods:One hundred patients with CAG intestinal metaplasia in Emergency General Hospital were selected as the research objects, and they were divided into infection group (75 cases) and non-infected group (25 cases) according to whether they had Hp infection. The clinical data, levels of serum ProGRP, CA242, and PCT were compared between the two groups, and the diagnostic value of the combination of serum indicators in the diagnosis of Hp infection in CAG intestinal metaplasia patients and their correlation with prognosis were analyzed.Results:The degree of atrophy and intestinal metaplasia in the infected group were higher than those in the non-infected group ( P<0.05). The levels of serum ProGRP, CA242 and PCT in the infected group were higher than those in the non-infected group: (159.41 ± 42.38) ng/L vs. (105.84 ± 18.29) ng/L, (7.24 ± 2.28) kU/L vs. (4.12 ± 1.30) kU/L, (3.84 ± 1.12)μg/L vs. (2.57 ± 0.82) μg/L, there were statistical differences ( P<0.05). The results of Spearman analysis showed that the levels of ProGRP, CA242, PCT had positive correlation with atrophy degree ( r = 0.614, 0.629, 0.672, P<0.05), and had positive correlation with intestinal metaplasia degree ( r = 0.574, 0.591, 0.603, P<0.05). The area under the curve (AUC) for the combined diagnosis of Hp infection in patients with CAG intestinal metaplasia by serum ProGRP, CA242, and PCT was 0.874 (95% CI 0.793 - 0.932), the diagnostic sensitivity and specificity were 76.00% and 92.00%, respectively. The incidence of gastric neoplasms in patients with Hp positive combined diagnosis of serum ProGRP, CA242, and PCT within 2 years (11.86%) was higher than that of negative patients (0), but the difference was not statistically significant ( P>0.05). Conclusions:The levels of serum ProGRP, CA242 and PCT in patients with CAG intestinal metaplasia are closely related to Hp infection. The combination of various indicators has high application value in the diagnosis of Hp infection.
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Procalcitonin(PCT), an important inflammatory suggestive marker of bacterial infection, has been widely used for the diagnosis of infectious diseases and guidance of antibiotic therapy in adults and children.Recent studies have shown that PCT, as a highly sensitive and specific inflammatory indicator, also has promising applications in the diagnosis and differential diagnosis, disease judgement, prognosis analysis, and antibiotic guidance of neonatal sepsis.Early PCT in neonates is characterized by physiological elevation, and it is important to understand the changing characteristics and influencing factors of PCT in neonates for an accurate clinical judgement of the disease.Therefore, we review the application value of PCT in neonatal sepsis.
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OBJECTIVES@#To study the effect of procalcitonin (PCT) on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced expression of the pyroptosis-related proteins nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain-like receptor protein 3 (NLRP3) and caspase-1 in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs).@*METHODS@#HUVECs were induced by LPS to establish a model of sepsis-induced inflammatory endothelial cell injury. The experiment was divided into two parts. In the first part, HUVECs were randomly divided into four groups: normal control, LPS (1 μg/mL), PCT (10 ng/mL), and LPS+PCT (n=3 each). In the second part, HUVECs were randomly grouped: normal control, LPS, and LPS+PCT of different concentrations (0.1, 1, 10, and 100 ng/mL) (n=3 each). Quantitative real-time PCR and Western blot were used to measure the mRNA and protein expression levels of NLRP3 and caspase-1 in each group.@*RESULTS@#In the first experiment: compared with the normal control group, the PCT, LPS, and LPS+PCT groups had significantly upregulated mRNA and protein expression levels of NLRP3 and caspase-1 (P<0.05); compared with the LPS group, the LPS+PCT group had significantly downregulated mRNA and protein expression levels of NLRP3 and caspase-1 (P<0.05). In the second experiment: compared with those in the LPS group, the mRNA and protein expression levels of NLRP3 and caspase-1 in the LPS+PCT of different concentrations groups were significantly downregulated in a concentration-dependent manner (P<0.05).@*CONCLUSIONS@#LPS can promote the expression of the pyroptosis-related proteins NLRP3 and caspase-1 in HUVECs, while PCT can inhibit the LPS-induced expression of the pyroptosis-related proteins NLRP3 and caspase-1 in HUVECs in a concentration-dependent manner.
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Humans , Caspase 1/metabolism , Human Umbilical Vein Endothelial Cells/metabolism , Lipopolysaccharides/pharmacology , NLR Family, Pyrin Domain-Containing 3 Protein/metabolism , Procalcitonin , Nucleotides/pharmacologyABSTRACT
Abstract BACKGROUND: Acute phase reactants play a role in the progression and prognosis of many malignant and premalignant tumors. This study investigated the diagnostic value of certain reactants as markers for cervical premalignant lesions. OBJECTIVES: Despite advanced screening and vaccination programs, cervical cancer remains a serious health problem worldwide. We aimed to determine the possible relationship between premalignant cervical disease and serum acute phase reactant levels. DESIGN AND SETTING: This study included 124 volunteers who underwent cervical cancer screening. We divided the patients into three groups according to cervical cytology and histopathological findings as follows: no cervical lesion, low-grade neoplasia, or high-grade neoplasia. METHODS: We included women aged 25-65 years with benign smear or colposcopy results, low- and high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions. The benign group was based only on cytology findings, whereas the other groups were based on histopathology findings. Demographic data and serum albumin, fibrinogen, ferritin, and procalcitonin levels were evaluated in the three groups. RESULTS: We found significant differences among the three groups in terms of age, albumin level, albumin/fibrinogen ratio, and procalcitonin level. The regression analysis revealed lower serum albumin levels in the low- and high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesion groups compared with the benign group. CONCLUSION: This is the first study to evaluate the importance of serum inflammatory markers in cervical intraepithelial lesions. Our results indicate that serum albumin level, albumin/fibrinogen ratio, procalcitonin level, and neutrophil values differ among cervical intraepithelial lesions.
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@#Abstract: Objective To investigate the early diagnostic value of peripheral blood procalcitonin (PCT), C-reactive protein (CRP), fibrinogen (FIB) and D-dimer (D-D) levels in patients with pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) complicated with bacterial pneumonia. Methods A total of 102 patients who admitted to Department of Tuberculosis of Affiliated Nantong Hospital of Shanghai University from Jan 2021 to May 2022 were enrolled in this study and divided into a group (52 cases) with pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) patients and a group (50 cases) with PTB patients complicated with bacterial pneumonia. The levels of PCT, CRP, FIB and D-D in the peripheral blood were measured, the differences and correlations in all indicators were compared among two groups. The sensitivity and specificity of these indicators in the early diagnosis of PTB complicated with bacterial pneumonia were analyzed by receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. Results The levels of PCT, CRP, FIB and D-D in the peripheral blood from the PTB complicated with bacterial pneumonia group were 0.06 (0.04, 0.16) ng/mL, 38.00 (3.88, 96.10) mg/L, 4.51 (3.02, 6.07) g/L, and 0.59 (0.34, 1.88) mg/L, respectively, which were significantly higher than corresponding 0.04 (0.03, 0.04) ng/mL, 3.20 (0.84, 7.22) mg/L, 2.96 (2.48, 3.77) g/L, and 0.27 (0.17, 0.36) mg/L in the PTB group (Z=-4.784, -5.233, -3.853, -4.199, all P<0.001). Furthermore, the levels of CRP and FIB in the PTB complicated by bacterial pneumonia group were highly positively correlated (r=0.855, P<0.001). The area under the ROC curve (AUC) of PCT, CRP, FIB and D-D for early diagnosis of PTB complicated with bacterial pneumonia were 0.757, 0.794, 0.747 and 0.764, respectively. In addition, the AUC obtained by simultaneous measurement of PCT, CRP, FIB and D-D was as high as 0.916, and the sensitivity and specificity of diagnosing PTB complicated with bacterial pneumonia were increased to 85.7% and 96.9%, respectively, which were higher than those of individual indicators. Conclusions Levels of peripheral blood PCT, CRP, FIB, and D-D all show varying degrees of increase in patients with PTB complicated with bacterial pneumonia, and detecting the levels of all four markers, rather than any single marker, can assist in early monitoring whether the tuberculosis patients are complicated with bacterial pneumonia.
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@#Abstract: Objective To explore the correlation between levels of hypersensitive C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) and procalcitonin (PCT) in serum and alveolar fluid and severity of disease in children with lobar pneumonia. Methods A total of 112 children diagnosed with lobar pneumonia from September 2020 to September 2021 were selected as the research subjects. The levels of hs-CRP and PCT in serum and alveolar fluid were detected by double antibody sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The children were divided into severe group (clinical pulmonary infection score, CPIS≥6 points) and mild group (CPIS<6 points) according to the severity of disease, and further classified into good prognosis group (cured, improved) and poor prognosis group (uncured) according to their treatment outcomes. The correlation of levels of hs-CRP and PCT in serum and alveolar fluid with disease severity in children and their predictive value on prognosis were analyzed. Results The levels of serum hs-CRP and PCT in severe group were (17.73±3.26) μg/L and (8.59±1.84) μg/L, which were significantly higher than corresponding (12.58±3.09) μg/L, and (5.62±1.59) μg/L in mild group (P<0.05); the levels of hs-CRP and PCT in alveolar fluid in severe group were (21.25±4.18) μg/L and (8.71±1.54) μg/L, which were significantly higher than corresponding (13.79±2.76) μg/L and (5.38±1.69) μg/L in mild group (P<0.05). The levels of hs-CRP and PCT in serum and alveolar fluid were positively correlated with CPIS scores (r=0.398, 0.441; 0.475, 0.586, P<0.05). The levels of hs-CRP and PCT in serum in poor prognosis group were (20.09±4.20) μg/L and (13.35±2.91) μg/L, which were significantly higher corresponding (8.75±2.19) μg/L and (6.28±1.31) μg/L in good prognosis group (P<0.05). The levels of hs-CRP and PCT in alveolar fluid were (23.70±4.29) μg/L and (10.73±2.04) μg/L, which were higher than corresponding (15.08±3.56) μg/L and (5.79±1.10) μg/L in poor prognosis group (P<0.05). There was no significant difference in AUC between combined detection of serum indicators and combined detection of alveolar perfusion fluid indicators in predicting the prognosis of children with lobar pneumonia (P>0.05). Conclusions The levels of hs-CRP and PCT in serum and alveolar fluid of children with lobar pneumonia are significantly increased and positively correlated with the severity of disease. However, the predictive value of the combined detection of serum indicators and combined detection of alveolar perfusion fluid indicators for the prognosis of children with lobar pneumonia is comparable.
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@#Introduction: Infected diabetic foot ulcers may lead to serious complications if not recognised in the early stage. Diagnosis of infection is particularly challenging at that stage; thus, a sensitive inflammatory biomarker may be helpful. We aimed to evaluate the role of procalcitonin (PCT) as an early biomarker for infected diabetic foot ulcers (IDFU). Materials and method: This cross-sectional study was conducted at Klinik Rawatan Keluarga (KRK), Orthopedic clinic and wards in Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) from May 2020 to December 2020. A total of 264 participants were recruited and divided into three groups: 50 diabetic patients with no ulcers (control), 107 patients with non-infected diabetic foot ulcers (NIDFU), and 107 patients with infected diabetic foot ulcers (IDFU). The level of PCT was taken for all patients. Total white count (TWC) and Creactive protein (CRP) were taken only for IDFU patients. Diagnosis of infection was based on the Infectious Disease Society of America-International Working Group of Diabetic Foot (IDSA-IMWGDF), and the severity of infection was graded according to the Wagner Classification. Results: The level of PCT was higher in IDFU than in NIDFU and diabetic patient, with a median (IQR) of 0.355 (0.63) ng/mL, 0.077 (0.15) ng/mL and 0.028 (0.02) ng/mL, respectively. PCT and CRP showed moderate positive correlations in IDFU patients (p<0.001). The sensitivity and specificity were 63.6% and 83.2%, respectively, at the best cut-off at 0.25 ng/mL. Conclusion: PCT is a valuable biomarker for the diagnosis of infection; however, it adds little value in the early diagnosis of IDFU in view of its low sensitivity.
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@#Infection is a dreaded complication in patients who have underwent arthroplasty and often very challenging to treat. It accounts for lesser than 1% of arthroplasty cases and although low in occurrence, requires appropriate investigations and management to successfully treat the condition. This case demonstrates a case of a rare microorganism with unusual antibiotic susceptibility causing a prosthetic joint infection and the use of serum procalcitonin level as guide in management of the patient.
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Objective:To evaluate the effect of procalcitonin(PCT)guiding anti-infection therapy on the prognosis of elderly patients.Methods:By searching PubMed, EMBASE database, Cochrane library, Cochrane clinical trial center registry and SinoMed database in Chinese, we searched for a randomized controlled clinical(RCT)study on the effect of PCT-guided anti-infection treatment on the prognosis of elderly patients, which was conducted according to the PRISMA statement.The main purpose of the study was to evaluate the time of antibiotic application.Results:After retrieval, 9 RCT clinical studies were finally included, involving 2 702 elderly patients, with an average follow-up of 3.5 months(1-12 months). The average age was(71.3±8.9)years old, with 52.8% of males and baseline levels of white blood cell(WBC)was 12.9×10 9/L, C-reactive protein(CRP)was 18.9 mg/L, PCT was 0.38 μg/L.Compared with conventional anti-infective therapy, PCT-guided anti-infective therapy can reduce the antibiotic application time of elderly patients[standard mean difference( SMD)=-2.39 days, 95% CI(-4.03, -0.75)days, P=0.004]. However, PCT-guided anti-infection treatment had no significant effect on the length of hospital stay[ SMD=-0.46 d, 95% CI(-0.05, 0.14)d, P=0.135], the rate of reinfection[ RR=0.87, 95% CI(0.73, 1.03), P=0.105]and the risk of all-cause death[ RR=1.02, 95% CI(0.80, 1.31), P=0.863]. Conclusions:PCT-guided anti-infection treatment can reduce the time of antibiotic application in elderly patients, but other clinical effects need to be verified by more large-scale studies
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Objective:To investigate serum C-reactive protein (CRP) , procalcitonin (PCT) and neutrophil CD64 in predicting early infection after internal fixation of limb fractures.Methods:A total of 2 572 patients with limb fractures undergoing internal fixation in Taishun County People’s Hospital from January 2016 to December 2022 were enrolled. Postoperative infection occurred in 121 cases (infected group) and did not occur in 2 451 cases (uninfected group). Serum levels of PCT, CRP and CD64 were tested at admission and d1, d3, d5 and d7 after operation. Repeated measurement analysis of variance was used to compare the serum levels of PCT, CRP and CD64 at different time points between two groups, the receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) was used to evaluate the predictive value of each index or in combination for early infection after internal fixation of limbs fractures.Results:The early infection rate after internal fixation was 4.70% (121/2 572). The levels of PCT, CRP and CD64 in the infection group began to rise after operation and decreased on d7; there were significant differences in PCT, CRP and CD64 levels between the two groups on d3, d5 and d7 after operation (PCT: Ftime=678.607, Fintergroup=2 218.323, Finteraction=653.150; CRP: Ftime=392.724, Fintergroup=1 812.502, FInteraction =379.577; CD64: Ftime=373.686, Fintergroup=4 817.438, Finteraction=528.353, all P< 0.001) . The area under the ROC curve of combined detection of PCT, CPR, and CD64 for predicting early infection was 0.856; the sensitivity and specificity of combined detection were 69.2% and 94.7%, respectively. The combined detection of three indicators showed better prediction values than PCT, CRP and CD64 alone ( Z=6.176, 3.838 and 2.431, P<0.01 or <0.05), and also better than combined detection of PCT and CRP ( Z=2.875, P=0.019). Conclusions:The combined detection of CD64, PCT and CRP is of value in prediction of postoperative infection after internal fixation of limb fractures, which is worthy of clinical application.
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Objective:To explore the diagnostic value of serum levels of pro calcitonin (PCT), β2 defensins (HBD-2), C-reactive protein (CRP) and the positive rate of group B streptococci (GBS) in preterm premature rupture of membranes (PROM) with amniotic infection.Methods:This study was a retrospective study. 156 pregnant women with preterm PROM who were diagnosed by the Obstetrics Department of the Hospital of Southern University of Science and Technology from January 2017 to January 2022 were selected as the study subjects. According to whether there was amniotic infection, they were divided into 57 infected women and 99 non infected women. The levels of serum PCT, HBD-2 and CRP before delivery were compared between the two groups, and the positive rate of GBS in vaginal discharge was detected, and the receiver operating curve (ROC) was used to analyze the value of various indicators in diagnosing amniotic cavity infection in preterm PROM mothers.Results:The serum levels of PCT, HBD-2, CRP, and GBS positivity in the infected group were significantly higher than those in the non infected group, with statistically significant differences (all P<0.01); The area under the curve (AUC) value, sensitivity, and specificity of serum PCT for diagnosing preterm PROM with amniotic cavity infection were 0.894, 82.56%, and 80.74%, respectively; The AUC value of HBD-2 for diagnosing preterm PROM with amniotic cavity infection was 0.792, the sensitivity was 70.78%, and the specificity was 77.59%; The AUC value, sensitivity, and specificity of CRP in diagnosing preterm PROM with amniotic cavity infection were 0.756, 68.94%, and 72.78%, respectively; The positive rate of GBS in vaginal discharge was 0.733, the sensitivity was 64.91%, and the specificity was 81.82%. Conclusions:The serum levels of PCT, HBD-2, CRP and the positive rate of GBS in vaginal discharge of pregnant women with preterm PROM complicated with amniotic infection will increase significantly. All indicators have high practical value for the diagnosis of preterm PROM complicated with amniotic infection.
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Objective:To analyze the value of serum related cytokines in predicting intestinal mucosal injury in patients with severe acute pancreatitis (SAP) and its correlation with intestinal mucosal injury.Methods:A total of 92 patients with SAP admitted to the First Hospital of Qinhuangdao from January 2020 to December 2021 were included in the study. According to the presence or absence of intestinal mucosal barrier dysfunction, the patients were divided into intestinal mucosal barrier dysfunction group (33 cases) and non-intestinal mucosal barrier dysfunction group (59 cases). Another 100 healthy subjects were selected as the control group. Clinical data of the subjects were collected. Serum levels of procalcitonin (PCT), D-lactic acid (D-L), endotoxin, diamine oxidase (DAO), citrulline and intestinal fatty acid binding protein (I-FABP) of the three groups were compared, and the correlation between the above indexes was analyzed by Pearson correlation analysis. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to analyze the value of each indicator in predicting intestinal mucosal barrier dysfunction in SAP patients.Results:The levels of serum PCT, D-L, endotoxin, DAO and I-FABP in intestinal mucosal barrier dysfunction group, non-intestinal mucosal barrier dysfunction group and control group showed a downward trend, while the level of serum citrulline showed an upward trend, with statistically significant difference (all P<0.05). Pearson correlation analysis showed that serum citrulline was negatively correlated with serum PCT, D-L, and endotoxin levels ( r=-0.740, -0.629, -0.310, all P<0.05); There was a positive correlation between serum DAO and serum PCT, D-L and endotoxin levels ( r=0.482, 0.779, 0.338, all P<0.05); There was a positive correlation between serum I-FABP and serum PCT, D-L and endotoxin levels ( r=0.613, 0.421, 0.341, all P<0.05). The ROC curve results showed that the area under the curve (AUC) of serum PCT, D-L, endotoxin, DAO, citrulline, and I-FABP predicting intestinal mucosal injury in SAP patients were 0.816, 0.789, 0.732, 0.801, 0.812, and 0.857, respectively. The AUC of the combination of the above indicators predicting intestinal mucosal barrier dysfunction in SAP patients was 0.909, significantly higher than that predicted by each index alone (all P<0.05). Conclusions:The occurrence of intestinal mucosal barrier dysfunction in SAP patients may be related to the increase of serum PCT, D-L, endotoxin, DAO, I-FABP levels and the decrease of citrulline levels. It may be considered to predict the risk of intestinal mucosal injury by detecting the levels of various indicators in patients′ serum.
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Objective:To explore the value of serum procalcitonin (PCT) and acute physiology and chronic health evaluation Ⅱ (APACHE Ⅱ) score on predicting prognosis of elderly patients with sepsis.Methods:A retrospective cohort study, patients with sepsis who admitted to the department of emergency and the department of geriatric medicine of Peking University Third Hospital from March 2020 to June 2021 were enrolled. Patients' demographics, routine laboratory examinations, APACHE Ⅱ score that within 24 hours of admission were obtained from their electronic medical records. The prognosis during the hospitalization and one year after discharge were collected, retrospectively. Univariate and multivariate analysis of prognostic factors were performed. And Kaplan-Meier survival curves were used to examine overall survival.Results:A total of 116 elderly patients met inclusion criteria, 55 were alive and 61 were died. On univariate analysis, clinical variables such as lactic acid [Lac, hazard ratio ( HR) = 1.16, 95% confidence interval (95% CI) was 1.07-1.26, P < 0.001], PCT ( HR = 1.02, 95% CI was 1.01-1.04, P < 0.001), alanine aminotransferase (ALT, HR = 1.00, 95% CI was 1.00-1.00, P = 0.143), aspartate aminotransferase (AST, HR = 1.00, 95% CI was 1.00-1.01, P = 0.014), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH, HR = 1.00, 95% CI was 1.00-1.00, P < 0.001), hydroxybutyrate dehydrogenase (HBDH, HR = 1.00, 95% CI was 1.00-1.00, P = 0.001), creatine kinase (CK, HR = 1.00, 95% CI was 1.00-1.00, P = 0.002), MB isoenzyme of creatine kinase (CK-MB, HR = 1.01, 95% CI was 1.01-1.02, P < 0.001), Na ( HR = 1.02, 95% CI was 0.99-1.05, P = 0.183), blood urea nitrogen (BUN, HR = 1.02, 95% CI was 0.99-1.05, P = 0.139), fibrinogen (FIB, HR = 0.85, 95% CI was 0.71-1.02, P = 0.078), neutrophil ratio (NEU%, HR = 0.99, 95% CI was 0.97-1.00, P = 0.114), platelet count (PLT, HR = 1.00, 95% CI was 0.99-1.00, P = 0.108) and total bile acid (TBA, HR = 1.01, 95% CI was 1.00-1.02, P = 0.096) shown to be associated with poor prognosis. On multivariable analysis, level of PCT was an important factor influencing the outcome of sepsis ( HR = 1.03, 95% CI was 1.01-1.05, P = 0.002). Kaplan-Meier survival curve showed that there was no significant difference with respect to the overall survival between the two groups, with patients of PCT ≤ 0.25 μg/L and PCT > 0.25 μg/L ( P = 0.220). It also showed that the overall survival rate in patients with high APACHE Ⅱ score (> 27 points) was significantly lower than that in patients with low APACHE Ⅱ score (≤ 27 points, P = 0.015). Conclusion:Serum PCT level is valuable prognostic factors of elderly patients with sepsis, and higher APACHE Ⅱ score (> 27 points) indicates a poor prognosis.
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Objective:To investigate the efficacy of recombinant human interferon α2b in the adjuvant treatment of neonatal pneumonia.Methods:A total of 60 children with neonatal pneumonia who received treatment in Lingbi County People's Hospital from January 2020 to January 2022 were included in this study. They were randomly divided into study and control groups ( n = 30/group). The control group was treated with conventional therapy and the study group was treated with recombinant human interferon α2b and conventional therapy. All children were treated for 7 days. The time to clinical symptom remission, total response rate, and inflammatory factor levels were compared between the two groups. Results:Before treatment, there were no significant differences in general data between the study and control groups (all P > 0.05). After treatment, the time to body temperature recovery, rale disappearance, cough disappearance, and shortness of breath disappearance in the study group were (4.03 ± 1.27) days, (5.13 ± 1.72) days, (4.96 ± 1.64) days, and (5.45 ± 1.52) days, respectively, which were significantly shorter than (5.13 ± 1.52) days, (6.73 ± 1.85) days, (6.73 ± 1.82) days, and (6.82 ± 1.74) days, respectively in the control group ( t = 3.04, 3.46, 3.95, 3.24, all P < 0.05). The total response rate in the study group was 93.3% (28/30), which was significantly higher than 80.0% (24/30) in the control group, and clinical efficacy was better in the study group than that in the control group ( Z = 2.40, P = 0.016). High-sensitivity C-reactive protein, procalcitonin, interleukin-6, and serum amyloid A in the study group were (2.96 ± 0.84) mg/L, (0.72 ± 0.33) μg/L, (6.25 ± 2.18) mg/L, and (3.48 ± 1.13) mg/L, respectively, which were significantly lower than (4.02 ± 1.53) mg/L, (1.16 ± 0.47) μg/L, (8.04 ± 2.06) ng/L, and (6.42 ± 2.03) mg/L, respectively in the control group ( t = 3.32, 4.19, 3.26, 6.93, all P < 0.05). Conclusion:Recombinant human interferon α2b for the adjuvant treatment of neonatal pneumonia can shorten the time to clinical symptom remission, decrease inflammatory factor levels, and improve clinical efficacy.
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Objective:To investigate the clinical efficacy of caspofungin combined with voriconazole in the treatment of older adult patients with pulmonary fungal infection and its effects on pulmonary function and inflammatory factors.Methods:A total of 100 patients with pulmonary fungal infection admitted to Hangzhou Ninth People's Hospital from January 2016 to December 2020 were included in this study. They were randomly assigned to undergo treatment with either voriconazole (control group, n = 50) or caspofungin combined with voriconazole (observation group, n = 50) for 14 consecutive days. Clinical efficacy and changes in pulmonary function and inflammatory factors after treatment relative to before treatment were determined in each group. Results:Total response rate in the observation group was significantly higher than that in the control group [90.00% (45/50) vs. 74.00% (37/50), χ2 = 4.33, P < 0.05). After treatment, forced vital capacity, forced expiratory volume in 1 second, and maximum expiratory flow rate in the observation group were (2.31 ± 0.77) L, (79.30 ± 6.72)%, (86.14 ± 7.27)%, respectively, which were significantly higher than (1.78 ± 0.74) L, (73.22 ± 6.56)%, (78.16 ± 7.09)% in the control group ( t = 3.50, 4.57, 5.55, all P < 0.05). Tumor necrosis factor α, interleukin-6, and procalcitonin levels in the observation group were (8.32 ± 1.41) ng/L, (35.19 ± 3.40) μg/L, (1.94 ± 0.78) ng/L, respectively, which were significantly lower than (10.15 ± 1.58) ng/L, (46.09 ± 3.64) μg/L, (2.43 ± 0.84) ng/L in the control group ( t = 6.11, 15.43, 3.02, all P < 0.05). The incidence of adverse reactions in the observation group was 4.0% (2/50), which was significantly lower than 18.0% (9/50) in the control group ( χ2 = 5.00, P < 0.05). Conclusion:Caspofungin combined with voriconazole for the treatment of pulmonary fungal infection in older adult patients can effectively improve pulmonary function, inhibit the inflammatory response, and have no obvious adverse reactions with accurate clinical efficacy.
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Objective:To investigate the value of red cell distribution width (RDW), procalcitonin (PCT), C-reactive protein (CRP), mean platelet volume (MPV)/platelet count (PLT) in predicting the prognosis of patients with acute exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (AECOPD).Methods:The clinical data of 137 patients with AECOPD admitted to the Department of Laboratory Medicine of Haiyang People's Hospital from March 2020 to March 2021 were retrospectively analyzed. According to their prognosis, these patients were divided into the survival group ( n = 99) and the death group ( n = 38). RDW, MPV, and PLT were measured using a blood cell analyzer (mindray ABC5390) in all patients. PCT and CRP levels were measured using the ETHealthcare instrument in all patients. RDW, PCT, CRP, and MPV/PLT were compared between the two groups. The value of RDW, PCT, CRP and MPV/PLT in predicting the prognosis of patients with AECOPD was analyzed using receiver operating characteristic curves. Results:The length of hospital stay and hospitalization expenses in the survival group were (10.75 ± 2.51) days and (1.49 ± 0.46) ten thousand yuan, respectively, which were significantly shorter and lower than (12.81 ± 3.36) days and (2.18 ± 0.57) ten thousand yuan in the death group ( t = 6.11, 14.45, both P < 0.05). The level of PLT in the survival group was significantly higher than that in the death group [(214.01± 63.97) × 10 9/L vs. (189.04 ± 61.75) × 10 9/L, t = 2.07, P < 0.05]. RDW, PCT, CRP, MPV, and MPV/PLT in the survival group were (13.18 ± 2.30)%, (4.30 ± 1.82) ng/L, (31.06 ± 10.38) mg/L, (11.39 ± 2.16) fL, and (0.05 ± 0.01), respectively, which were significantly lower than (16.65 ± 1.78)%, (9.55 ± 2.11) ng/L, (68.21 ± 20.94) mg/L, (12.28 ± 2.09) fL, (0.06 ± 0.02) in the death group ( t = 8.38, 14.45, 13.82, 2.18, 3.88, all P < 0.05). The receiver operating characteristic curve analysis results showed that the area under the curves depicting the value of RDW, PCT, CRP, MPV/PLT and their combination in predicting AECOPD was 0.831, 0.978, 0.966, 0.713, 0.988, with the predictive sensitivity of 62.6%, 89.9%, 91.9%, 59.6%, 98.0%, respectively, and the predictive specificity of 97.4%, 97.4%, 100.0%, 65.8%, 92.1%, respectively. Conclusion:Combined detection of RDW, PCT, CRP and MPV/PLT has a high value for the prediction of AECOPD. Corresponding indicators should be selected according to the actual situation of patients to guide clinical diagnosis and treatment.