[Diagnosis of bacterial pneumonia by serum beta-globulin demarcation]

We studied whether the consolidation whose serum beta-globulin demarcation showed more than 12% was bacterial pneumonia or not. The materials were the patients with fever (> or = 37 degrees C) and the consolidation on chest-X ray film, the value of serum beta-globulin demarcation was more than 12% from 1995 to 2000. There were 5 cases with drug-induced pneumonitis, 5 cases with BOOP, 2 cases with eosinophilic pneumonia, 1 case with lung cancer (adenocarcinoma), and 1 case with interstitial pneumonia with dermatomyositis. No one had bacterial pneumonia. These results suggested the consolidation with fever whose serum beta-globulin demarcation showed more than 12% was not bacterial pneumonia.