Delta Procalcitonin Is a Better Indicator of Infection Than Absolute Procalcitonin Values in Critically Ill Patients: A Prospective Observational Study
Table 2
Clinical signs and suspected source of infection at enrollment ().
Total
NI-group
I-group
value
Fever (<36°C; >38°C)
55 (48.2%)
13 (44.8%)
42 (49.4%)
0.670
WBC (>12 or <4 × 109/L)
82 (71.9%)
22 (75.9%)
60 (70.6%)
0.585
Impaired gas exchange
82 (71.9%)
18 (62.1%)
64 (75.3%)
0.171
Impaired consciousness
59 (51.8%)
9 (31.0%)
50 (58.8%)
0.010
Hemodynamic instability
74 (64.9%)
13 (44.8%)
61 (71.8%)
0.009
PCT (ng/mL)
3.37 (9.22)
1.12 (1.36)
4.62 (10.72)
0.018
CRP (mg/L)
182.75 (158.5)
147.60 (156.50)
208.80 (140.60)
0.301
Respiratory
72 (63.2%)
17 (58.6%)
55 (64.7%)
0.557
Soft tissue
13 (11.4%)
2 (6.9%)
11 (12.9%)
0.377
Abdominal
14 (12.3%)
7 (24.1%)
7 (8.2%)
0.024
Urinary tract
5 (4.4%)
0
5 (5.9%)
0.182
Bloodstream
6 (5.3%)
2 (6.9%)
4 (4.7%)
0.648
Central nervous system
4 (3.5%)
1 (3.4%)
3 (3.5%)
0.984
WBC: white blood cell count, PCT: procalcitonin, and CRP: C-reactive protein. The PCT and CRP values are presented as median (interquartile range).
