Clinica chimica acta; international journal of clinical chemistry
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To achieve sufficient and safe anticoagulation with unfractionated heparin (UFH) a close and reliable drug monitoring is necessary. In general, the activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT) is used for this purpose. In acute phase response, however, the APTT test procedure might be unreliable e.g. with false low results in the presence of elevated factor VIII. In this so called heparin resistance, measurement of anti-Xa activity is recommended over APTT to avoid potentially harmful dose escalation. A combination of anti-Xa measurement and global hemostatic testing with ROTEM® employing the anti-Xa sensitive PiCT® reagent showed high correlation with enoxaparin levels. This test modification could also be suitable for monitoring UFH. Aim of the study was to evaluate the correlation between PiCT®-ROTEM® and levels of UFH. ⋯ As a point-of-care applicable tool ROTEM® is immediately at hand. If further clinical studies confirm sensitivity in heparin resistance, PiCT®-ROTEM® could permit rapid UFH dose adjustments especially required in critical illness with acute phase response.
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S100B is a calcium-binding protein released into the blood from astroglial cells due to brain injury. Some authors have described a correlation between S100B serum concentration and severity of brain damage. There is not much information about the accuracy of urinary S100B for predicting outcome after severe traumatic brain injury (TBI). 55 patients with severe TBI were included in the study. ⋯ ROC-analysis showed that S100B at 24h post-severe TBI is a useful tool for predicting mortality (serum: AUC 0.958, urine: AUC 0.778). The best cut-offs for S100B were 0.461 μg/L and 0.025 μg/L (serum and urine respectively), with a sensitivity of 90% for both measurements and a specificity of 88.4% (serum) and 62.8% (urine). We can state that the determination of S100B levels both in urine and serum acts as a sensitive and an effective biomarker for the early prediction of mortality after severe TBI.
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Statins reportedly have anti-inflammatory effects aside from their cholesterol-lowering effect. We investigated the effects of statins on serum hs-CRP level and clinical outcome of acute ischemic stroke (IS) patients. ⋯ Statin therapy reduces serum hs-CRP level and may be associated with favorable 3-month outcome in patients after acute IS.
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We compared the diagnostic utilities of procalcitonin (PCT) and C-reactive protein (CRP) for predicting bacteremia diagnosed by blood cultures. PCT was also evaluated as a parameter for differentiating true bacteremia from culture contamination. ⋯ PCT concentration by single testing was more useful for predicting bacteremia than CRP. PCT also exhibited diagnostic utility for ruling out blood culture contamination. Thus, PCT could be helpful in the accurate diagnosis of bacteremia.
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Breath analysis provides a convenient and simple alternative to traditional specimen testing in clinical laboratory diagnosis. As such, substantial research has been devoted to the analysis and identification of breath biomarkers. ⋯ This review describes the use of breath biomarkers in diagnosis of asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), cystic fibrosis (CF), lung cancer, as well as other pulmonary diseases. A number of breath biomarkers in lung pathophysiology will be described including nitric oxide (NO), carbon monoxide (CO), hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) and other hydrocarbons.