SynthesisBMC infectious diseases2017
Procalcitonin-guided antibiotic therapy in critically ill adults: a meta-analysis.
Synthesis in BMC infectious diseases, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. An erratum has been issued. Cited by 10 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
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
10 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 22 citations in OpenAlex.
- Pooled it
- Low expression of CD39 on monocytes predicts poor survival in sepsis patients.Journal of intensive care · 2025Article
- Current Status of Antibiotic Stewardship and the Role of Biomarkers in Antibiotic Stewardship Programs.Infection & chemotherapy · 2022Review
- Guidelines for the Use of Procalcitonin for Rational Use of Antibiotics.Indian journal of critical care medicine : peer-reviewed, official publication of Indian Society of Critical Care Medicine · 2022Article
- A three-marker protein biosignature distinguishes tuberculosis from other respiratory diseases in Gambian children.EBioMedicine · 2020Article
- Sepsis 2019: What Surgeons Need to Know.Surgical infections · 2020Review
- Procalcitonin Levels in Post TACE Infection.Cancer management and research · 2020Article
- Procalcitonin: A promising tool or just another overhyped test?International journal of medical sciences · 2020Review
- Correction to: Procalcitonin-guided antibiotic therapy in critically ill adults: a meta-analysis.BMC infectious diseases · 2019Article
- Procalcitonin-guided antibiotic discontinuation in ventilator-associated pneumonia: a prospective observational study.Infection and drug resistance · 2019Article
Corrections and comments
- Erratum issued
Authors and funding
4 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundAs a novel biomarker of inflammation, procalcitonin (PCT) has proven useful to guide antibiotic therapy in intensive care unit (ICU). However, there are controversial on mortality. The aim of this study was to evaluate the utility of PCT-guided antibiotic therapy in critically ill adults and determine whether studies are sufficient.
methodsA systematic search in PubMed, Embase and Cochrane was performed. We included only randomized controlled trials which compared the safety and efficacy between PCT-guided or standard antibiotic therapy groups in ICU adults. Trial sequential analysis and GARDE approach were performed.
resultsFifteen studies met our criteria for inclusion finally, with a cumulative number of 5486 ICU patients. There was no difference in 28-day mortality between two compared groups (P = 0.626), but significant decreases were observed in the duration of antibiotic therapy for the first episode of infection (P < 0.001) and length of hospitalization (P = 0.049). No significant deference was found in secondary endpoints except total duration of antibiotic therapy (P < 0.001). TSA revealed that the pooled sample sizes of 28-day mortality and the duration of antibiotic therapy for the first episode of infection exceeded the estimated required information size, but not the length of hospitalization.
conclusionsPCT-guided therapy is a better and safer algorithm to be applied into ICU patients, which appears no effect on 28-day mortality while performing preferable utility in reducing the duration of antibiotic therapy for the first episode of infection. More studies on these endpoints were not recommended.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
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.