Author/Authors :
Rahimkhani، Monireh نويسنده Department of Lab Medical Sciences, School of Allied Medical Sciences,
Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran. Rahimkhani, Monireh , Einollahi، Nahid نويسنده Department of Clinical Laboratory Sciences, Faculty of Allied Medical Sciences, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran. Einollahi, Nahid , Khavari Daneshvar، Hossein نويسنده Cancer Research Center, Cancer Institute, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran. Khavari Daneshvar, Hossein , Dashti، Nasrin نويسنده Department of Clinical Laboratory Sciences, Allied Medical Sciences, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran. Dashti, Nasrin
Abstract :
Procalcitonin (PCT) is a prohormone that has been used as a marker for the diagnosis of bacterial infections. The aim of this study was to survey PCT levels in patients with cirrhosis. Sixty-four patients with hepatic cirrhosis and 32 healthy blood donors were enrolled in this study. Serum PCT levels was detected using immunoluminometric assay. The rate of positive PCT was higher in patients with hepatitis C cirrhosis (92.8%) than the other groups. Among other cirrhotic patients, positive PCT levels were 77% for hepatitis B, 70% for cancer and 53.3% for unknown groups respectively. Serum procalcitonin levels were significantly higher in cirrhotic patients with bacterial infection (2.65±1.11 ng/ml) than those without infection (0.59±0.16 ng/ml, P=0.0001). PCT assay in cirrhotic patients may help diagnosis of sepsis and reduce unnecessary antibiotic use.
