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A Neonatal Imaging Model of Gram-Negative Bacterial Sepsis
Published on: August 12, 2020
Biomarkers in neonatal infection
1The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Department of Paediatrics, 6/F Clinical Sciences Building, Prince of Wales Hospital, Sha Tin, New Territories, Hong Kong.
Insights
Differentiating infected newborns from those with noninfective conditions is challenging. New biomarkers like acute phase reactants, cytokines, and chemokines offer improved diagnostic utility for neonatal infection.
Area of Science:
- Neonatal Medicine
- Infectious Diseases
- Biomarker Discovery
Background:
- Distinguishing infected neonates from those with noninfective diseases is clinically challenging.
- Delayed antibiotic treatment in infected infants can be fatal, while overuse leads to resistance and complications.
- Current biomarkers like blood cell counts have significant limitations in diagnosing neonatal infections.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review emerging biomarkers for diagnosing neonatal infections.
- To evaluate the diagnostic utility and clinical relevance of novel biomarkers.
- To explore the prognostic value of these biomarkers in neonatal care.
Main Methods:
- Literature review of recent research on neonatal infection biomarkers.
- Discussion of major biomarker classes: acute phase reactants, cytokines, chemokines, and leukocyte surface antigens.
- Analysis of the application of these biomarkers for prognostic information.
Main Results:
- Novel biomarkers show potential for superior diagnostic accuracy compared to conventional methods.
- Specific biomarkers (e.g., cytokines, chemokines) are associated with infection status and severity.
- Prognostic information can be derived from these biomarkers, aiding clinical decision-making.
Conclusions:
- Emerging biomarkers offer enhanced diagnostic capabilities for neonatal infections.
- These biomarkers can assist clinicians in differentiating infected from noninfected infants.
- Further research and validation are needed to fully integrate these biomarkers into clinical practice.
Abstract:
Infected newborn infants are often difficult to differentiate from patients suffering from noninfective diseases. Whilst delaying treatment with antibiotics of infected infants may be fatal, widespread indiscriminate use in all cases with suspected bacterial infection could lead to both drug-induced complications and the development of multidrug-resistant organisms. Conventional biomarkers, such as blood cell counts and morphology, have serious limitations. Investigators in this area of research have, therefore, made strenuous efforts to discover more reliable biomarkers with superior diagnostic utilities and clinically relevant characteristics to help neonatal clinicians differentiate between infected and noninfected infants. The major classes of biomarkers in neonatal infection of recent interest will be discussed, including: acute phase reactants, cytokines, chemokines and leukocyte surface antigens. The application of these biomarkers to derive prognostic information useful to neonatal clinicians will also be considered.
