Langenbeck's archives of surgery
-
Langenbecks Arch Surg · Mar 2009
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative StudyProcalcitonin (PCT)-guided algorithm reduces length of antibiotic treatment in surgical intensive care patients with severe sepsis: results of a prospective randomized study.
Adequate indication and duration of administration are central issues of modern antibiotic treatment in intensive care medicine. The biochemical variable procalcitonin (PCT) is known to indicate systemically relevant bacterial infections with high accuracy. In the present study, we aimed to investigate the clinical usefulness of PCT for guiding antibiotic treatment in surgical intensive care patients with severe sepsis. ⋯ Monitoring of PCT is a helpful tool for guiding antibiotic treatment in surgical intensive care patients with severe sepsis. This may contribute to an optimized antibiotic regimen with beneficial effects on microbial resistances and costs in intensive care medicine.