Diagnostic Value of Procalcitonin and C-Reactive Protein in Diagnosis of Severe Infection in Febrile Neutropenic Patients

The aim of this study was to investigate the sensitivity and specificity of procalcitonin and C-reactive protein in the diagnosis of febrile neutropenic patients in Seyed-Alshohada Hospital (Isfahan, Iran) during 2010-11. This analytic cross-sectional study included all febrile neutropenic patients (n = 64) who were admitted in Seyed-Alshohada Hospital during 2010-11. Sex, age, admission time, and duration of fever before taking antibiotics were collected. Patients were then divided to groups with and without severe infection. The mean levels of procalcitonin in the groups with and without severe infection were 28.65 ± 2.68 and 2.48 ± 0.66 ng/ml, respectively (P < 0.001). The mean levels of C-reactive protein in the groups with and without severe infection were 159.48 ± 9.73 and 126.17 ± 10.63 mg/L, respectively (P = 0.015). Using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves, sensitivity and specificity of procalcitonin were determined as 92.5% and 97.3%, respectively. The corresponding values for C-reactive protein were 70.5% and 42.1%. Procalcitonin can be considered as a predictor and diagnostic marker for diagnosis of severe infectious disease. It can also differentiate severe and non-severe disease in febrile neutropenic patients. Nevertheless, clinical signs and symptoms of the disease should also be considered.