Ann Dermatol.  2016 Dec;28(6):704-710. 10.5021/ad.2016.28.6.704.

Serum Procalcitonin Level Reflects the Severity of Cellulitis

• Noh SH
• Park SD
• Kim EJ

• KMID: 2368120
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.5021/ad.2016.28.6.704

Abstract

BACKGROUND
Cellulitis is a common bacterial infection of the superficial skin. Procalcitonin is one of the precursor proteins of calcitonin, its levels are elevated in bacterial infection, and it has been established as a diagnostic marker for severe bacterial infections.
OBJECTIVE
This study evaluated the clinical usefulness of procalcitonin for predicting disease severity and prognosis of cellulitis.
METHODS
We reviewed the medical records of 160 patients diagnosed with cellulitis in the past 3 years. Body temperature, procalcitonin, white blood cell (WBC), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels were measured on their first day of admission. The associations of procalcitonin, WBC, ESR, and CRP with the body temperature and the number of hospitalized days were assessed.
RESULTS
Procalcitonin, WBC, and CRP showed a positive correlation with body temperature. In addition, procalcitonin, WBC, ESR, and CRP showed a positive correlation with number of hospitalized days (p<0.05).
CONCLUSION
In patients diagnosed with cellulitis, proclacitonin was a helpful parameter to indicate the severity of disease and also a useful predictor of prognosis.

Keyword

Cellulitis; Procalcitonin

MeSH Terms

Bacterial Infections
Blood Sedimentation
Body Temperature
C-Reactive Protein
Calcitonin
Cellulitis*
Humans
Leukocytes
Medical Records
Prognosis
Skin
C-Reactive Protein
Calcitonin

Figure

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  Fig. 1 Correlation of white blood cell (WBC; A), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR; B), C-reactive protein (CRP; C), and procalcitonin (D) with body temperature.

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  Fig. 2 Correlation of white blood cell (WBC; A), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR; B), C-reactive protein (CRP; C), and procalcitonin (D) with hospitalized days.

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  Fig. 3 In the post-hoc analysis, group 4 had a statistically significant increase in the number of hospitalized days compared to the other groups.

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