Comparison of procalcitonin levels with blood culture results and foci of infection in septic patients.

Background And Aim: Large number of studies proved undisputable role of procalcitonin (PCT) in sepsis diagnosis. Moreover, potential of procalcitonin to predict blood culture results according to Gram staining, different types of pathogens and foci of infection is discussed lately. The primary aim of our study was to compare the PCT levels in septic patients with documented Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteraemia.

Th17 lymphocytes and Interleukin-17A during the course of severe community acquired pneumonia, comparison with etiology and outcome.

Objective: Observational study of patients diagnosed with severe community acquired pneumonia (sCAP) carried out to evaluate levels of interleukin 17A (IL-17A) and T helper 17 (Th17) lymphocyte count in peripheral circulation and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) in the early course of sCAP of different etiology and to compare them with patient's characteristics and outcome.

Material And Methods: Cohort of 74 patients with sCAP was analyzed and respective microbial etiology established. According to pathogens, 3 subgroups of patients were created: bacterial, viral and mixed etiology.

Bacteremia in Patients with Sepsis in the ICU: Does It Make a Difference?

Sepsis (and septic shock) is on of the most common causes of death worldwide. Bacteremia often, but not necessarily, occurs in septic patients, but the impact of true bacteremia on a patient's clinical characteristics and outcome remains unclear. The main aim of this study was to compare the characteristics and outcome of a well-defined cohort of 258 septic patients with and without bacteremia treated in the intensive care unit (ICU) of a tertiary center hospital in Prague, Czech Republic.

Effect of Convalescent Plasma Therapy on Mortality and Viral Load in Severely Ill Patients with COVID-19.

The use of convalescent plasma (CP) appeared to be a promising, easily available and safe way of treatment of severe COVID-19 at the onset of the pandemic in early 2020. Conducted in 2020 and 2021, our study of 52 severely to critically ill COVID-19 patients who received CP plasma as a treatment and of 97 controls found no difference in 30-day or 90-day mortality rates. A significant viral load drop in most patients (4.

Myristic Acid Serum Levels and Their Significance for Diagnosis of Systemic Inflammatory Response, Sepsis, and Bacteraemia.

Myristic acid is identified as a metabolite with the highest diagnostic sensitivity and specificity in the metabolome of patients with bacteraemia. Its significant decrease has been observed in patients with septic shock not responding to treatment. Another study has reported a close correlation of myristic acid levels with the outcome of severe trauma patients.