C-reactive protein in view of prognosis in sepsis

Abstract

IntroductionSepsis is the host reaction to invading microbes. The septic response generally occurs when immune defenses fail to contain an invading microbe and may also be induced by microbial exotoxins. C-reactive protein (CRP) is an acute-phase protein in humans and an important component of the innate immune system. CRP activates complement's classical route, which is one of its key strategies for defending the host.Patients and methodsThis study was conducted on 20 patients with systemic sepsis and admitted to the critical care unit; moreover, 20 healthy participants were studied as a control group.ResultsBoth groups were matched for age and sex, with 55% male and a mean age of 43.5 years in the group with systemic sepsis. Regarding the outcome of patients, 45% were survivors. Regarding the description of patients, 55% were surgical and 45% were nonsurgical types among septic patients. We found a highly significant difference in CRP between the two groups regarding CRP. We found no significant difference in CRP levels between septic shock and nonseptic shock. CRP level was consistently higher in nonsurvivors. CRP levels showed no significant difference on days 1 and 7 in surviving patients, but the levels increased significantly from 1 to 7 days in nonsurvivors. We found no significant difference in the length of stay between patients with high CRP levels and those with low CRP.ConclusionCRP is an acute-phase protein whose concentration increases in association with bacterial infection, inflammation, or tissue necrosis. CRP is most useful in that it shows the greatest and most rapid increase, up to a thousand-fold over the baseline level. A persistent elevation in CRP indicates increased continuation of the pathologic process or a postoperative complication in the case of a surgical patient.