Table 2.
PCT plasma levels at different breakpoints of the population with confirmed SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia.
| All | ≤ 0.5 PCT μg/L | > 0.5 PCT μg/L | ≤ 1 PCT μg/L | > 1 PCT μg/L | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total patients with confirmed illness | 48a | 25 (52%) | 21 (44%) | 32 (67%) | 14 (30%) |
| Age, median (IQR) | 67 (53–74) | 65 (51–75) | 68 (54–73) | 66 (52–74) | 67 (54–73) |
| Sex | |||||
| Male | 27 (56%) | 11 (44%) | 14 (67%) | 17 (53%) | 8 (57%) |
| Female | 21 (44%) | 14 (56%) | 7 (33%) | 15 (47%) | 6 (43%) |
| Days from onset symptoms to ICU admission, median (IQR) | 7 (5–12) | 7 (5–13) | 8 (6–12) | 7 (5–13) | 8 (5–13) |
| APACHE II score, median (IQR) | 15 (12–19) | 15 (13–18) | 17 (12–19) | 15 (12–19) | 17 (12–18) |
| SOFA score, median (IQR) | 7 (4–8) | 6 (4–8) | 7 (4–11) | 6 (3–8) | 8 (4–11) |
| Signs and symptoms | |||||
| Fever | 48 (100%) | 25 (100%) | 21 (100%) | 32 (100%) | 14 (100%) |
| Cough | 35 (73%) | 20 (80%) | 14 (67%) | 24 (75%) | 10 (71%) |
| Dyspnoea | 42 (88%) | 23 (92%) | 18 (86%) | 30 (94%) | 11 (79%) |
| Malaise | 21 (44%) | 8 (32%) | 11 (52%) | 12 (38%) | 7 (50%) |
| Myalgia | 2 (4%) | 1 (4%) | 1 (5%) | 2 (6%) | – |
| Treatment | |||||
| Antibacterial agents | 42 (88%) | 20 (80%) | 20 (95%) | 27 (84%) | 13 (93%) |
| levofloxacin | 17 (35%) | 4 (16%) | 12 (57%) | 8 (25%) | 8 (57%) |
| ceftriaxone | 22 (46%) | 9 (36%) | 11 (52%) | 14 (44%) | 6 (43%) |
| azithromycin | 10 (21%) | 4 (16%) | 5 (24%) | 6 (19%) | 3 (21%) |
| linezolid | 9 (19%) | 7 (28%) | 2 (10%) | 7 (22%) | 2 (14%) |
| other beta-lactams | 15 (31%) | 11 (44%) | 4 (19%) | 11 (35%) | 4 (29%) |
| Others | |||||
| Kaletra | 45 (94%) | 25 (100%) | 19 (90.5%) | 31 (97%) | 13 (92.9%) |
| Steroids | 17 (35%) | 11 (44%) | 6 (28.6%) | 12 (38%) | 5 (36%) |
| Tocilizumab | 2 (4%) | 2 (8%) | – | 2 (6%) | – |
| Chloroquine | 45 (94%) | 25 (100%) | 19 (90.5%) | 31 (97%) | 13 (93%) |
| Interferon | 41 (85%) | 24 (96%) | 16 (76.2%) | 29 (91%) | 11 (79%) |
| MV | 45 (94%) | 23 (92%) | 20 (95.2%) | 30 (94%) | 13 (93%) |
| ECMO | 1 (2%) | 1 (4%) | – | 1 (3%) | – |
| Comorbidities | |||||
| Obesity | 23 (48%) | 12 (48%) | 10 (48%) | 16 (50%) | 6 (43%) |
| BMI 30 to 40 | 15 (31%) | 9 (36%) | 6 (28%) | 11 (34%) | 3 (21%) |
| BMI > 40 | 7 (15%) | 3 (12%) | 4 (19%) | 4 (13%) | 3 (21%) |
| Arterial hypertensionb | 21 (44%) | 7 (28%) | 13 (62) | 11 (34%) | 9 (64%) |
| Lung disease | 18 (37%) | 9 (36%) | 8 (38%) | 11 (34%) | 6 (43%) |
| Smoker | 9 (19%) | 5 (20%) | 4 (19%) | 7 (22%) | 2 (14%) |
| Heart disease | 5 (10%) | 2 (8%) | 3 (14%) | 3 (9%) | 6 (43%) |
| Diabetes mellitus | 9 (19%) | 3 (12%) | 5 (24%) | 4 (13%) | 4 (28%) |
| Hypothyroidism | 9 (19%) | 6 (24%) | 3 (14%) | 6 (19%) | 3 (21%) |
| Immunosuppression | 3 (6%) | 2 (8%) | 1 (5%) | 3 (10%) | – |
| Pathogens identified | |||||
| Pseudomonas aeruginosa | 3 (6%) | 3 (12%) | – | 3 (9%) | – |
| E. faecium | 1 (2%) | – | 1 (5%) | 1 (3%) | – |
| H. influenza | 1 (2%) | – | 1 (5%) | – | 1 (7%) |
| MRSA | 1 (2%) | 1 (4%) | – | 1 (3%) | – |
| Mortality at 3-days | 3 (6%) | 1 (4%) | 2 (9%) | 2 (6%) | 1 (7%) |
| Mortality at 7-days | 6 (15%) | 2 (8%) | 4 (19%) | 4 (12.5%) | 2 (14.2%) |
APACHE: acute physiology and chronic health evaluation II; BMI: body mass index; ECMO: Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation; ICU: intensive care unit; IMV: invasive mechanical ventilation; IQR: interquartile range; MRSA: Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus; MV: mechanical ventilation; NR: not reported; SARS-CoV-2 = severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2; SD: standard deviation; SOFA: sequential organ failure assessment
a
Only forty-seven patients had PCT value.
b
P < 0.05 for breakpoint PCT at 0.5 and P = 0.06 for breakpoint PCT at 1.