Table 21.
Decision to start antibiotic therapy based on initial inflammatory parameters
| On admission | Total (n = 13,932) | No. (%) | With antibiotics n = 12,238 (%) | Without antibiotics n = 1498 (%) | Odds ratio (95% CI) | p value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Anemia (Hb < 12 g/dL) | 13,622 | 2337 (17.2) | 2082 (17.1) | 255 (17.8) | 0.95 (0.83–1.10) | 0.51 |
| Thrombocytosis (Platelet count > 180) | 13,636 | 7533 (55.2) | 6718 (55.1) | 815 (56.5) | 0.95 (0.85–1.06) | 0.32 |
| Leukocytosis (Leukocytes > 10.000 | 13,620 | 2077 (15.3) | 1884 (15.5) | 193 (13.5) | 1.18 (1.01–1.38) | 0.046 |
| Leukopenia (Leukocytes < 4000) | 1871 (13.7) | 1658 (13.6) | 213 (14.9) | 1.11 (0.95–1.29) | 0.19 | |
| Lymphopenia (Lymphocytes < 1300) | 13,613 | 10,375 (76.2) | 9401 (77.2) | 974 (67.6) | 0.61 (0.55–0.69) | < 0.001 |
| C-reactive protein > 50 mg/L | 13,127 | 7130 (54.3) | 6615 (56.3) | 515 (37.5) | 2.14 (1.91–2.41) | < 0.001 |
| Procalcitonin > 0.5 ng/mL | 6452 | 764 (11.8) | 716 (12.3) | 48 (7.5) | 1.73 (1.28–2.35) | < 0.001 |
| Ferritin > 274 mcg/L | 5325 | 4084 (76.7) | 3758 (78.0) | 326 (64.7) | 1.93 (1.59–2.35) | < 0.001 |
| Fibrinogen > 650 mg/dL | 8789 | 3710 (42.2) | 3336 (42.4) | 374 (40.6) | 1.08 (0.94–1.24) | 0.28 |
| CK > 200 U/L | 6844 | 1436 (21.0) | 1331 (21.3) | 105 (18.0) | 1.23 (0.98–1.53) | 0.07 |
| LDH > 300 U/L | 11,825 | 6568 (55.5) | 5969 (56.2) | 599 (49.6) | 1.30 (1.16–1.47) | < 0.001 |
| IL-6 > 4.3 pg/mL | 1767 | 1550 (87.7) | 1400 (88.4) | 150 (81.5) | 1.73 (1.16–2.59) | 0.007 |
| D-dimer > 250 ng/mL | 10,590 | 9226 (87.1) | 8310 (87.4) | 916 (84.7) | 1.26 (1.05–1.50) | 0.011 |