Procalcitonin and C-Reactive Protein Levels Might Help Detect Bacterial Infection in Patients with H1N1 Influenza

The biomarker procalcitonin shows promise for distinguishing between viral and bacterial infections. To determine the predictive value of procalcitonin and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels for distinguishing between 2009 H1N1 influenza infection and bacterial or mixed H1N1/bacterial infection, researchers performed a retrospective observational study of 16 patients with H1N1 infection and 9 patients with bacterial or mixed infection who were admitted to an Australian intensive care unit (ICU).

Patients with H1N1 infection alone had significantly more bilateral infiltrates, lower APACHE scores, lower median white blood cell counts, and longer ICU stays than those with bacterial or mixed infection, but none of these findings were useful discrim…