Diagnostic and prognostic value of presepsin in the emergency department

Sepsis syndrome is a common situation and has devastating implications on health care systems worldwide. Biomarkers may have an important role to highlight the presence, absence or severity of sepsis.

Retrospective study is conducted on a group of 95 suspected sepsis patient (0.16%) out of a total of 56,996 patients that were presented in the Emergency Department/Emergency County Hospital "St. Spiridon" from Iaşi during 01.01.2012-01.12.2012. The study aims to establish the following: the incidence of sepsis diagnosis, analysis of prognostic factors, relationship between the presepsin value and clinical outcome.

In men, there was a distribution of cases between the age of 22 years up to 89 years with an average confidence interval between 59.32 and 67.23 years, and the distribution of cases varies among women from age of 40 years up to 93 years, with an average confidence interval between 65.53 and 75.47 years The most frequent primary source of infection is localized at the pulmonary level, in a total of 21.1%, followed by abdominal location occurring in a total 14.7%. Area under the curve in ROC curve analysis regarding mortality showed significant values of area for presepsin (0.859), leukocytes (0.790), traumatic injuries association (0.761) and the presence of gastrointestinal history.

Presepsin has diagnostic value, early prognostic value and is an early marker of mortality in septic patients. Trauma associated with severe systemic infection leads to an increase in mortality.