Clinical microbiology and infection : the official publication of the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases
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Clin. Microbiol. Infect. · Jul 2004
Multicenter Study Clinical TrialPotential use of procalcitonin as a diagnostic criterion in febrile neutropenia: experience from a multicentre study.
In order to assess the diagnostic value of procalcitonin, 158 patients with febrile neutropenia from centres across Europe were studied. Patients with fever were diagnosed on the basis of either: (1) clinical, radiological and microbiological criteria; or (2) the procalcitonin value. In the latter case, concentrations of 0.5-1.0 ng/mL were considered diagnostic of localised infection, concentrations of 1.0-5.0 ng/mL of bacteraemia, and concentrations of > 5.0 ng/mL of severe sepsis. ⋯ Overall, the sensitivity (specificity) of procalcitonin for bacteraemia was 44.2% (64.3%) at concentrations of 1.0-5.0 ng/mL, and 83.3% (100%) for severe sepsis at concentrations of > 5.0 ng/mL. It was concluded that procalcitonin is a marker strongly suggestive of severe sepsis at concentrations of > 5.0 ng/mL. Estimated concentrations of < 0.5 ng/mL indicate that infection is unlikely, but it was observed that bacteraemia associated with coagulase-negative staphylococci may fail to elevate serum procalcitonin levels.
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Clin. Microbiol. Infect. · Jul 2004
Epidemiology of Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia in southern Spain.
In order to investigate the impact of Pneumocystis carinii infection in southern Spain following the introduction of highly active anti-retroviral therapy (HAART), all cases of pneumocystosis between 1998 and 1999 were identified from data compiled by the national surveillance system. In total, 498 cases of pneumocystosis were recorded, of which 87% involved HIV-positive patients. ⋯ There was a higher number of cases in winter. Despite HAART implementation, pneumocystosis remains a significant health problem for both HIV-positive and HIV-negative patients.