title: Serum calprotectin: an antimicrobial peptide as a new marker for the diagnosis of sepsis in very low birth weight newborns.
abstract: To determine the diagnostic utility of serum calprotectin, a mediator of innate immune response against infections, we performed a multicenter study involving newborns with a birth weight < 1500 g and a postnatal age >72 hours of life. The diagnostic accuracy of serum calprotectin was compared with that of the most commonly used markers of neonatal sepsis (white blood cell count, immature-to-total-neutrophil ratio, platelet count, and C-reactive protein). We found that the serum calprotectin concentration was significantly higher (P < .001) in 62 newborns with confirmed sepsis (3.1 ± 1.0  μg/mL) than in either 29 noninfected subjects (1.1 ± 0.3 μg/ml) or 110 healthy controls (0.91 ± 0.58 μg/ml). The diagnostic accuracy of serum calprotectin was greater (sensitivity 89%, specificity 96%) than that of the traditional markers of sepsis. In conclusion, serum calprotectin is an accurate marker of sepsis in very low birth weight newborns.
authors.affiliation: Department of Women Health and Territorial Medicine, University of Rome "La Sapienza", 00185 Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Gianluca
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Terrin
authors.forename: Annalisa
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Passariello
authors.forename: Francesco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Manguso
authors.forename: Gennaro
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Salvia
authors.forename: Luciano
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Rapacciuolo
authors.forename: Francesco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Messina
authors.forename: Francesco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Raimondi
authors.forename: Roberto Berni
authors.initials: RB
authors.lastname: Canani
mesh_terms: D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood*; D001792:Blood Platelets / Q000166:cytology; D002097:C-Reactive Protein / Q000032:analysis; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D019102:Infant, Very Low Birth Weight / Q000097:blood* / Q000276:immunology; D007558:Italy; D007958:Leukocyte Count; D039841:Leukocyte L1 Antigen Complex / Q000097:blood*; D007962:Leukocytes / Q000166:cytology; D008297:Male; D009504:Neutrophils / Q000166:cytology; D010976:Platelet Count; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D018805:Sepsis / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D039841:Leukocyte L1 Antigen Complex; D002097:C-Reactive Protein