Predictive Value of Procalcitonin for Bacterial Infection after Transarterial Chemoembolization or Radiofrequency Ablation for Hepatocellular Carcinoma
Table 4
Comparison of antibiotics use in patients with fever after TACE and/or RFA between prestudy and study period.
Study period
Prestudy period
TACE/RFA
0.041
TACE
433 (76.9)
416 (73.1)
RFA
103 (18.3)
135 (23.7)
Sequential TACE/RFA
27 (4.8)
18 (3.2)
Proven bacterial infection
15 (2.7)
14 (2.5)
0.853
Proven bacterial infection within 7days
10 (1.8)
11 (1.9)
>0.9
Number of cases antibiotics prescribed
63 (11.2)
124 (21.8)
<0.001
Duration of antibiotics prescribed, median days (IQR)
6 (3–10)
7 (5–13)
<0.001
Length of hospital stay (after TACE/RFA), median days (IQR)
