Stability of procalcitonin at room temperature

Area of Science:

• Biochemistry
• Clinical Chemistry
• Pediatric Infectious Diseases

Background:

• Assessing the stability of procalcitonin (PCT) is crucial for accurate clinical diagnostics.
• Investigating the impact of room temperature storage on PCT levels in pediatric samples.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the stability of procalcitonin (PCT) after 48 hours of storage at room temperature.
• To develop a predictive model for estimating PCT levels immediately after thawing.

Main Methods:

• Collected samples from febrile children (7-92 days old) and froze them rapidly.
• Measured PCT levels immediately after thawing (y) and after 48 hours at room temperature (x).
• Utilized fractional polynomials to model the relationship between x and y for prediction (y').

Main Results:

• A significant 30% decrease in PCT median values was observed after storage (p < 0.001).
• A linear model (y = 1.37x) accurately predicted PCT levels (R² = 0.99).
• Predicted PCT values (y') closely matched actual thawed values (y) across categories.

Conclusions:

• Procalcitonin (PCT) levels decrease notably after 48 hours of room temperature storage.
• Accurate prediction of original PCT values is feasible using stored sample measurements and a statistical model.