Procalcitonin as an early marker of bacterial infection in neutropenic febrile children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

Objective And Design: The aim of this study was to assess the value of procalcitonin (PCT), C-reactive protein (CRP), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-a), interleukin (IL)-1b, IL-8, and soluble TNF receptor II (sTNFRII) in early and rapid diagnosis of infection in neutropenic children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and to distinguish bacterial from viral infections.

Patients: The study included five groups (A, B, C, D, and E) of children with ALL undergoing intensive chemotherapy. Groups A and B consisted of neutropenic children with bacterial and viral infection, respectively.

Serial procalcitonin responses in infection of children with secondary immunodeficiency.

Purpose: Procalcitonin has proven to be a sensitive inflammatory marker in non-neutropenic patients. The aim of this study was to determine and compare Procalcitonin with other inflammatory markers in the serum of immunosuppressed children with haematological malignancies; and to assess the predictive value of these mediators in distinguishing between bacterial and non-bacterial infection.

Methods & Results: The study included 37 children with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia undergoing intensive chemotherapy.

Serum adenosine deaminase and procalcitonin concentrations in neutropenic febrile children with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia.

Neutropenia as a state of immunosuppression is probably the major problem in patients suffering from acute lymphoblastic leukaemia undergoing intensive chemotherapy. Fever is frequent in neutropenic patients and often related to infection. Clinically, the presence of infection in patients with neutropenia may be difficult to establish, because there are usually few signs of infection.

Serum procalcitonin, adenosine deaminase and its isoenzymes in the aetiological diagnosis of pneumonia in children.

A prospective study was undertaken to assess the usefulness of leukocyte count, serum C-reactive protein (CRP), procalcitonin (PCT), and the activities of total adenosine deaminase (tADA) and its isoenzymes ADA1 and ADA2, in the aetiological diagnosis of pneumonia in children. The study included three groups. Group A consisted of 23 children with bacterial pneumonia, group B of 50 children with viral and mycoplasmal pneumonia and group C of 46 healthy children.

Adenosine deaminase activity and its isoenzyme pattern in patients with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis and systemic lupus erythematosus.

Adenosine deaminase (ADA) is involved in purine metabolism and plays a significant role in the mechanisms of the immune system. The aim of this study was to investigate the activity of total ADA (tADA) and its isoenzymes ADA1 and ADA2 in serum and peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBLs) of children with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (JRA) and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) in different phases of the diseases. The study comprised 34 patients with rheumatic disease, 24 with JRA and 10 with SLE, and 64 healthy controls.

Circulating soluble adhesion molecule levels in children with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia.

Unlabelled: The aim of this study was to evaluate levels of serum soluble intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (sICAM-1), soluble vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (sVCAM-1) and soluble E-selectin (sE-selectin) as parameters of disease activity and to monitor the response to treatment in children with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL). The above soluble adhesion molecules were determined in the serum of 35 children with ALL and 30 healthy children (control group) of the same age range. The samples were obtained before treatment, 6 months after the beginning of the treatment (remission of the disease), 6 months after the end of the treatment and during relapse of the disease.

Prognostic significance of adenosine deaminase in children with malignancies.

In 33 children, 23 with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and 10 with solid tumors, the phenotype of the enzyme adenosine deaminase (ADA) was detected in the erythrocytes by electrophoresis in cellulose acetate. In all children the ADA enzyme activity was also determined in the plasma by spectrophotometry at the onset of the disease, during remission, at the end of the therapy, and during relapse. The phenotype in all children was ADA1-1.

Response of blood and bone marrow neutrophils to the nitroblue-tetrazolium test in children.

The ability of blood and bone marrow neutrophils to reduce nitroblue-tetrazolium both before and after stimulation with Escherichia coli endotoxin was investigated. The polymorphonuclear cells of the bone marrow are less able to reduce the dye than blood cells. This difference is maintained after stimulation by endotoxin.