The clinical significance of procalcitonin in patients with intracranial infection

Abstract

Objective To investigate the values and clinical significance of procalcitonin(PCT)determination in the diagnosis of intracranial infection.Methods 62 patients with acute meningitis were divided into bacterial meningitis group and viral meningitis group according to the type of infection.Serum PCT levels were detected at different stages of meningitis and cerebrospinal fluid was analyzed.Results PCT levels were(26.43±15.32)μg/L in the acute phase of bacterial meningitis and significantly higher than the normal level;after treatment,they were(5.85±5.43)/ag/L on day 3,(0.21±0.26)μg/L on day 5,and(0.06±0.12)μg/L on day 7,being significantly reduced(P<0.05).PCT levels were(1.64±3.25)μg/L in the acute phase and(0.83±3.12)μg/L on day 3 in viral encephalitis group,which were significantly lower than those in bacterial meningitis group(P<0.05).CRP levels did not differ significantly between the two groups[(28.3±15.3)(5-110)mg/L vs.(27.3±16.4)(0-45)mg/L,P＞0.05].There were significant differences between the two groups in leukocyte count and protein level in CSF[(287±15)(24-590)×lO6 vs.(17±5)(6-120)×l06 and(1.68±0.36)(0.4-4.8)mg/L vs.(0.67±0.32)(O.1-2.5)mg/L,P<0.05],but there was a overlap in the two groups.Conclusions Serum procalcitonin determination has important clinical significance in the early differential diagnosis of bacterial meningitis with viral encephalitis. Key words: Procalcitonin; Intracranial infection; Clinical significance