Clin Chem Lab Med
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The aim of the study was to investigate serum NT-proBNP levels in adult patients with transposition of the great arteries (d-TGA) corrected by atrial switch procedures (Mustard or Senning) operation and to assess the relationship with ventricular impairment and NYHA class. ⋯ Elevated levels of NT-proBNP appear to be a useful tool in assessing heart failure in patients with transposition of the great arteries after atrial switch correction.
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Trauma patients sustaining abdominal trauma exhibit high risk of organ failure and/or sepsis aggravating morbidity and mortality during the post-traumatic course. The present study re-evaluates L- and I-FABPs (small fatty acid binding proteins) as early biomarkers for abdominal injury (AI) in a large cohort of patients and analyzes their potential as indicators of specific organ failure and their association with sepsis and/or mortality in the post-traumatic course. ⋯ Our results confirm the potential of L- and I-FABP to indicate abdominal injuries initially after trauma. Except L-FABP as indicator of acute kidney failure both FABPs have to be further evaluated as predictors for other organ failures, sepsis and/or mortality.
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Whether or not antibiotic stewardship protocols based on procalcitonin levels results in cost savings remains unclear. Herein, our objective was to assess the economic impact of adopting procalcitonin testing among patients with suspected acute respiratory tract infection (ARI) from the perspective of a typical US integrated delivery network (IDN) with a 1,000,000 member catchment area or enrollment. ⋯ Our results show substantial savings associated with procalcitonin protocols of ARI across common US treatment settings mainly by direct reduction in unnecessary antibiotic utilization. These results are robust to changes in key parameters, and the savings can be achieved without any negative impact on treatment outcomes.
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We evaluated the new body fluid mode on the UF-1000i urinalysis analyzer for counting total white blood cells (WBC) and red blood cells (RBC) in continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD), ascites and pleural fluids. ⋯ The UF-1000i BF mode offers rapid and reliable total WBC and RBC counts for initial screening of CAPD, ascites and pleural fluid, and can improve the workflow in a routine laboratory; however, when using automated analyzers, the inspection of scattergrams is required to ensure the most accurate results are obtained.