ArticleScandinavian journal of primary health care2010
Influence of CRP testing and clinical findings on antibiotic prescribing in adults presenting with acute cough in primary care.
Article in Scandinavian journal of primary health care, 2010. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 48 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
48 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 89 citations in OpenAlex.
- A systematic review and meta-analysis on diagnostic accuracy of point-of-care C-reactive protein devices for acute respiratory tract infections.Infection · 2026Pooled it
- Biomarkers as point-of-care tests to guide prescription of antibiotics in people with acute respiratory infections in primary care.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2022Pooled it
- Impact of point-of-care C reactive protein in ambulatory care: a systematic review and meta-analysis.BMJ open · 2019Pooled it
- Association between point-of-care CRP testing and antibiotic prescribing in respiratory tract infections: a systematic review and meta-analysis of primary care studies.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2013Pooled it
- Comparing GPs' antibiotic prescribing decisions to a clinical prediction rule: an online vignette study.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2023Trial
- Does C-reactive protein predict time to recovery and benefit from oseltamivir treatment in primary care patients with influenza-like illness? A randomized controlled trial secondary analysis.Scandinavian journal of primary health care · 2021Trial
- Associations with antibiotic prescribing for acute exacerbation of COPD in primary care: secondary analysis of a randomised controlled trial.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2021Trial
- Usefulness of C-reactive protein testing in acute cough/respiratory tract infection: an open cluster-randomized clinical trial with C-reactive protein testing in the intervention group.BMC family practice · 2014Trial
- Chest auscultation - tradition and expectationsScandinavian journal of primary health care · 2026Review
- Factors influencing antibiotic use in confirmed viral respiratory tract infections.The Journal of antimicrobial chemotherapy · 2026Observational
- Implementation of C-Reactive Protein Point-of-Care Testing for Respiratory Tract Infections in Primary Care: A Systematic Review Using the RE-AIM Framework.Antibiotics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Association of C-reactive protein with cause, duration and severity of lower respiratory infections in primary care: a prospective cohort study.BMJ open respiratory research · 2025Article
- Differentiating viral and bacterial infections: A machine learning model based on routine blood test values.Heliyon · 2024Article
- Point-of-care testing and antibiotics prescribing in out-of-hours general practice: a register-based study in Denmark.BMC primary care · 2024Article
- The Feasibility of C-Reactive Protein Point-of-Care Testing to Reduce Overuse of Antibiotics in Children with Acute Respiratory Tract Infections in Rural Kyrgyzstan: A Pilot Study.Pediatric health, medicine and therapeutics · 2024Article
- Patient Stratification for Antibiotic Prescriptions Based on the Bound-Free Phase Detection Immunoassay of C-Reactive Protein in Serum Samples.Biosensors · 2023Article
- Improving Antimicrobial Use to Protect the Environment: What Is the Role of Infection Specialists?Antibiotics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Article
- ImmunoDisk-A Fully Automated Bead-Based Immunoassay Cartridge with All Reagents Pre-Stored.Biosensors · 2022Article
- Diagnoses Based on C-Reactive Protein Point-of-Care Tests.Biosensors · 2022Review
- Factors associated with C-reactive protein testing when prescribing antibiotics in general practice: a register-based study.BMC primary care · 2022Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors at 3 institutions in 3 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveRespiratory tract infections are the most common indication for antibiotic prescribing in primary care. The value of clinical findings in lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI) is known to be overrated. This study aimed to determine the independent influence of a point of care test (POCT) for C-reactive protein (CRP) on the prescription of antibiotics in patients with acute cough or symptoms suggestive of LRTI, and how symptoms and chest findings influence the decision to prescribe when the test is and is not used.
designProspective observational study of presentation and management of acute cough/LRTI in adults.
settingPrimary care research networks in Norway, Sweden, and Wales. SUBJECTS: Adult patients contacting their GP with symptoms of acute cough/LRTI.
main outcome measuresPredictors of antibiotic prescribing were evaluated in those tested and those not tested with a POCT for CRP using logistic regression and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis.
resultsA total of 803 patients were recruited in the three networks. Among the 372 patients tested with a POCT for CRP, the CRP value was the strongest independent predictor of antibiotic prescribing, with an odds ratio (OR) of CRP ≥ 50 mg/L of 98.1. Crackles on auscultation and a patient preference for antibiotics perceived by the GP were the strongest predictors of antibiotic prescribing when the CRP test was not used.
conclusionsThe CRP result is a major influence in the decision whether or not to prescribe antibiotics for acute cough. Clinicians attach less weight to discoloured sputum and abnormal lung sounds when a CRP value is available. CRP testing could prevent undue reliance on clinical features that poorly predict benefit from antibiotic treatment.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.