Comparative efficacies of procalcitonin and conventional inflammatory markers for prediction of renal parenchymal inflammation in pediatric first urinary tract infection.

Objectives: To compare the reliability of procalcitonin (PCT) with conventional laboratory parameters in predicting for renal parenchymal inflammation (RPI).

Methods: The study cohort consisted of 57 children who were admitted for a first-episode urinary tract infection. All patients underwent measurement of the leukocyte count, erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), C-reactive protein (CRP), and serum PCT.

Procalcitonin for the early prediction of renal parenchymal involvement in children with UTI: preliminary results.

In order to establish the most reliable marker for distinguishing urinary tract infections (UTI) with and without renal parenchymal involvement (RPI), we recorded the clinical features and admission leukocyte count, erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), C-reactive protein (CRP), and serum procalcitonin (PCT) in 57 children (including 43 girls) aged 2-108 months admitted with a first episode of UTI. RPI was evaluated by Tc-99m dimercaptosuccinic acid (DMSA) scintigraphy within 7 days of admission. To establish cut-off points for ESR, CRP, and PCT, we used receiver operating characteristics curves and compared the area under the curve for ESR, CRP, and PCT.