The Diagnostic Value of Serum C-Reactive Protein for Identifying Pneumonia in Hospitalized Patients with Acute Respiratory Symptoms
Table 1
Baseline characteristics of patients admitted with lower respiratory tract infections.
Pneumonia ()
Other lower respiratory tract infections ()
value
Demographics
Age, years
72 (56–80)
79 (71–85)
<0.01
Gender, male
349 (63)
232 (54)
0.84
Comorbidity (Charlson index)
4 (2–6)
6 (4–7)
<0.01
Clinical variables
Days of symptoms
4 (2–7)
4 (2–7)
0.27
Previous antibiotic treatment
164 (33)
100 (30)
0.40
Heart rate (bpm)
98 (84–110)
97 (84–110)
0.56
Respiratory rate (rpm)
28 (24–32)
28 (24–32)
0.79
Systolic blood pressure (mmHg)
123 (109–140)
133 (116–146)
<0.01
Diastolic blood pressure (mmHg)
69 (60–78)
71 (63–82)
<0.01
Temperature (°C)
No fever (<37°C)
197 (35)
219 (60)
<0.01
Low-grade fever (37-38°C)
163 (29)
87 (24)
High-grade fever (>38°C)
197 (35)
60 (16)
Laboratory findings
Basal pO2(mmHg)
61 (55–70)
62 (55–72)
0.19
C-reactive protein (mg/L)
187 (123–278)
59 (24–108)
<0.01
Leukocyte count (×109/L)
13.3 (9.27–17.65)
10.8 (7.97–13.30)
<0.01
Creatinine (mg/dL)
1.0 (0.8–1.3)
0.9 (0.7–1.2)
0.01
Microbiology findings
Microorganism found
169 (30.3%)
30 (8.9%)
<0.01
Follow-up
Days in hospital
6 (4–10)
6 (4–9)
0.05
Intensive care unit transfers
37 (7)
4 (1)
<0.01
In-hospital mortality
31 (6)
16 (4)
0.45
Quantitative variables are shown as medians (IQR 25–75) and qualitative variables as absolute numbers (percentages). Other lower respiratory tract infections included acute bronchitis and acute exacerbations of COPD.
