Significance of Serum Procalcitonin Levels in Differential Diagnosis of Pediatric Pneumonia

Abstract

The objective of this study was to explore the early diagnosis methods of severe pediatric pneumonia. A total of 65 cases hospitalized in pediatric departments and ICU of our hospital because of severe pneumonia were divided into two groups according to pathogen detection. The groups were as follows: 34 cases of bacterial pneumonia, 32 cases of a non-bacterial pneumonia, and 37 cases of healthy children after physical examination in our hospital as the control group. The peripheral blood was sampled from each of the three groups for procalcitonin (PCT). The pediatric PCT level in peripheral blood of the bacterial pneumonia group was significantly higher than that of non-bacterial pneumonia group and the control group. The statistical differences (each at p<0.01) and the level of pediatric serum PCT in the bacterial pneumonia group before treatment were statistically different from that in the same group after treatment (p<0.01), while the level of pediatric serum PCT in non-bacterial pneumonia group before treatment was statistical indifferent from that in the same group after treatment (p>0.01). PCT level in pediatric peripheral blood is an important diagnostic indicator of bacterial infection and a sensitive indicator of distinction between bacterial pneumonia and the non-bacterial pneumonia, thus being of great significance for clinical and differential diagnosis.