Procalcitonin (PCT) has been shown to be of additional value in the work-up of a febrile patient. This study is the first to investigate the additional value of PCT in an Afro-Caribbean febrile population at the emergency department (ED) of a general hospital. Febrile patients were included at the ED. Prospective, blinded PCT measurements were performed in patients with a microbiologically or serologically confirmed diagnosis or a strongly suspected diagnosis on clinical grounds. PCT analysis was performed in 93 patients. PCT levels differentiated well between confirmed bacterial and confirmed viral infection (area under the curve [AUC] of 0.82, sensitivity 85%, specificity 69%, cut-off 0.24 ng/mL), between confirmed bacterial infection and non-infectious fever (AUC of 0.84, sensitivity 90%, specificity 71%, cut-off 0.21 ng/mL) and between all bacterial infections (confirmed and suspected) and non-infectious fever (AUC of 0.80, sensitivity 85%, specificity 71%, cut-off 0.21 ng/mL). C-reactive protein (CRP) levels were shown to be less accurate when comparing the same groups. This is the first study showing that, in a non-Caucasian febrile population at the ED, PCT is a more valuable marker of bacterial infection than CRP. These results may improve diagnostics and eventually decrease antibiotic prescriptions in resource-limited settings.

doi.org/10.1007/s10096-010-1150-5, hdl.handle.net/1765/24043
European Journal of Clinical Microbiology & Infectious Diseases: an international journal on pathogenesis, diagnosis, epidemiology, therapy, and prevention of infectious diseases
Erasmus MC: University Medical Center Rotterdam

Limper, M., de Kruif, M., Ajubi, N. E., van Zanten, A., Brandjes, D., Duits, A., & van Gorp, E. (2011). Procalcitonin as a potent marker of bacterial infection in febrile Afro-Caribbean patients at the emergency department. European Journal of Clinical Microbiology & Infectious Diseases: an international journal on pathogenesis, diagnosis, epidemiology, therapy, and prevention of infectious diseases, 30(7), 831–836. doi:10.1007/s10096-010-1150-5