| HOME | HELP | FEEDBACK | SUBSCRIPTIONS | ARCHIVE | SEARCH | TABLE OF CONTENTS |
Guest Access | Sign In via User Name/Password
|
|
|
|||||||
Guest Access | Sign In via User Name/Password |
|||||||||
1 From the Department of Respiratory Medicine, King's Cross Hospital, Dundee, Scotland
Study objective: To assess whether C-reactive protein (CRP) is a sensitive marker of pneumonia and to evaluate whether it may be used as an index of treatment response.
Design: A retrospective casenote review was carried out on 40 patients admitted with simple community acquired pneumonia and 20 patients admitted with purulent bronchitis (infective exacerbations of chronic obstructive airways disease). Serum CRP levels, in addition to other traditional markers of infection, were measured in all patients on the first day. In 21 cases of pneumonia, a second CRP measurement was available after 3 to 7 days of antibiotic therapy.
Results: Temperature and WBC count showed considerable overlap between the pneumonia and bronchitic groups, whereas there was no overlap in serum levels of CRP. C-reactive protein levels were above 100 mg/L in all but two cases. In the bronchitic group only 7 out of 20 had levels above the normal range (<10 mg/L). Mean±Standard Error of the Mean and lower/upper quartiles for CRP (mg/L) were as follows: pneumonia 217±16 mg/L, 130/275; purulent bronchitis, 18±3 mg/L, 10/18; [95% confidence interval (CI) for difference 153, 244 mg/L]. A CRP above 70 mg/L in pneumonia on day 1 occurred in association with a WBC count <12x109/L in 45% of cases and with a temperature <37.0°C in 32%. CRP levels fell to <100 mg/L in all cases of pneumonia after antibiotic treatment: pretreatment 213±21 mg/L ±2, 138/270; posttreatment 31±5 mg/L, 14/47; [95% CI for difference 141, 221 mg/L].
Conclusion: Serum CRP may be a useful adjunctive test in pneumonia, both in terms of distinguishing parenchymal from endobronchial infection, as well as being a marker of treatment response.
Key Words: C-reactive protein • diagnostic aid • pneumonia
This article has been cited by other articles:
|
|
 |
|
  V. van der Meer, A. K. Neven, P. J van den Broek, and W. J J Assendelft Diagnostic value of C reactive protein in infections of the lower respiratory tract: systematic review BMJ, July 2, 2005; 331(7507): 26. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 C. M. Luna C-Reactive Protein in Pneumonia: Let Me Try Again Chest, April 1, 2004; 125(4): 1192 - 1195. [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 T. J Marrie Symptoms and signs plus erythrocyte sedimentation rate or C-reactive protein predicted pneumonia in lower respiratory tract infection Evid. Based Med., March 1, 2004; 9(2): 55 - 55. [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 E. Garcia Vazquez, J.A. Martinez, J. Mensa, F. Sanchez, M.A. Marcos, A. de Roux, and A. Torres C-reactive protein levels in community-acquired pneumonia Eur. Respir. J., April 1, 2003; 21(4): 702 - 705. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 J. P. Metlay and M. J. Fine Testing Strategies in the Initial Management of Patients with Community-Acquired Pneumonia Ann Intern Med, January 21, 2003; 138(2): 109 - 118. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
A. Ortqvist Treatment of community-acquired lower respiratory tract infections in adults Eur. Respir. J., July 1, 2002; 20(36_suppl): 40S - 53s. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
R. Gonzales and M. A. Sande Uncomplicated Acute Bronchitis Ann Intern Med, December 19, 2000; 133(12): 981 - 991. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
| HOME | HELP | FEEDBACK | SUBSCRIPTIONS | ARCHIVE | SEARCH | TABLE OF CONTENTS |
