ArticlePloS one2013
Changes in circulating procalcitonin versus C-reactive protein in predicting evolution of infectious disease in febrile, critically ill patients.
Article in PloS one, 2013. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 16 papers.
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.
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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.
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Who cites it
16 citing papers in PubMed, 43 citations in OpenAlex.
- Clinical course of patients with bloodstream infections enrolled in the BALANCE clinical trial.The Journal of antimicrobial chemotherapy · 2025Trial
- Trial
- Duration Matters: Tailoring Antibiotic Therapy for Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia.Antibiotics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Kinetics of C-reactive protein during extracorporeal membrane oxygenation.The International journal of artificial organs · 2024Observational
- Changes in Heparin-Binding Protein, Procalcitonin, and C-Reactive Protein Within the First 72 Hours Predict 28-Day Mortality in Patients Admitted to the Intensive Care Unit with Septic Shock.Medical science monitor : international medical journal of experimental and clinical research · 2023Article
- Article
- Continuous Piperacillin-Tazobactam Infusion Improves Clinical Outcomes in Critically Ill Patients with Sepsis: A Retrospective, Single-Centre Study.Antibiotics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Article
- Article
- Challenges in the Etiology and Diagnosis of Acute Febrile Illness in Children in Low- and Middle-Income Countries.Journal of the Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society · 2016Review
- Predicting Outcome of Childhood Bacterial Meningitis With a Single Measurement of C-Reactive Protein.The Pediatric infectious disease journal · 2016Article
- IMMUNE CELL PHENOTYPE AND FUNCTION IN SEPSIS.Shock (Augusta, Ga.) · 2016Review
- Article
- Serum resistin levels may be new prognostic factor of crimean-congo hemorrhagic fever.International journal of clinical and experimental medicine · 2014Article
- Rapid diagnosis of sepsis.Virulence · 2014Review
- Procalcitonin as a predictor of sepsis and outcome in severe trauma patients: a prospective study.Journal of laboratory physicians · 2013Article
- Do cytokines really sing the blues?Cerebrum : the Dana forum on brain science · 2013Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
2 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveAlthough absolute values for C-reactive protein (CRP) and procalcitonin (PCT) are well known to predict sepsis in the critically ill, it remains unclear how changes in CRP and PCT compare in predicting evolution of: infectious disease, invasiveness and severity (e.g. development of septic shock, organ failure and non-survival) in response to treatment. The current study attempts to clarify these aspects.
methodsIn 72 critically ill patients with new onset fever, CRP and PCT were measured on Day 0, 1, 2 and 7 after inclusion, and clinical courses were documented over a week with follow up to Day 28. Infection was microbiologically defined, while septic shock was defined as infection plus shock. The sequential organ failure assessment (SOFA) score was assessed.
resultsFrom peak at Day 0-2 to Day 7, CRP decreased when (bloodstream) infection and septic shock (Day 0-2) resolved and increased when complications such as a new (bloodstream) infection or septic shock (Day 3-7) supervened. PCT decreased when septic shock resolved and increased when a new bloodstream infection or septic shock supervened. Increased or unchanged SOFA scores were best predicted by PCT increases and Day 7 PCT, in turn, was predictive for 28-day outcome.
conclusionThe data, obtained during ICU-acquired fever and infections, suggest that CRP may be favoured over PCT courses in judging response to antibiotic treatment. PCT, however, may better indicate the risk of complications, such as bloodstream infection, septic shock, organ failure and mortality, and therefore might help deciding on safe discontinuation of antibiotics. The analysis may thus help interpreting current literature and design future studies on guiding antibiotic therapy in the ICU.
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