Home 5 Clinical Diagnostics Insider 5 PCT Effective to ID Invasive Bacterial Infection in Febrile Infants

PCT Effective to ID Invasive Bacterial Infection in Febrile Infants

by | Feb 12, 2016 | Clinical Diagnostics Insider, Diagnostic Testing and Emerging Technologies, Testing Trends-dtet

A procalcitonin (PCT) assay has better diagnostic accuracy than C-reactive protein (CRP) concentration, white blood cell (WBC) count, and absolute neutrophil cell (ANC) measurement for detecting invasive bacterial infections (IBIs) in febrile infants less than 3 months of age, according to a study published in the January issue of JAMA Pediatrics. Both PCT and CRP perform similarly for identifying severe bacterial infections (SBIs) in these infants, although urinalyses may be adequate to detect urinary tract infections (UTIs), which account for the majority of these SBIs. "Although it would be unwise to use the PCT assay alone, combined with careful analysis of the case history, physical examination, and appropriate tests, it provides important information for the detection of IBIs in this population," writes lead author Karen Milcent, M.D., from Paris-Saclay University in France. Given that there are few diagnostically reliable symptoms or clinical signs and these signs are often indistinguishable from viral infection in young infants, a complete sepsis evaluation, empirical antibiotic therapy, and hospital admission are recommended for febrile infants up to one month of age and are common for those between one and two months of age, the authors say. Evaluation of PCT assays have been lacking in infants […]

Subscribe to Clinical Diagnostics Insider to view

Start a Free Trial for immediate access to this article