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Extremely elevated C-reactive protein levels are associated with unfavourable outcomes, including death, in

Yehonatan Pasternak1, Gilat Livni1, Shai Ashkenazi1

  • 1Department of Paediatrics A, Schneider Children's Medical Centre, Petach Tikva (affiliated with Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv), Israel.

Acta Paediatrica (Oslo, Norway : 1992)
|September 27, 2015
PubMed

Insights

Extremely high C-reactive protein (CRP) levels in children indicate serious illness, often infections. These elevated CRP levels are linked to worse outcomes and higher mortality, especially in pediatric oncology patients.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric Medicine
  • Clinical Chemistry
  • Infectious Diseases

Background:

  • Extremely elevated C-reactive protein (CRP) levels in hospitalized children warrant investigation.
  • Understanding the clinical significance of high CRP is crucial for pediatric patient management.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the clinical significance of extremely elevated C-reactive protein (CRP) levels in hospitalized children.
  • To determine the association between high CRP levels and clinical outcomes in pediatric patients.

Main Methods:

  • Retrospective analysis of hospitalized children with CRP ≥ 30 mg/dL from 2010-2013.
  • Comparison of clinical data, diagnoses, and outcomes between the study group (high CRP) and control group (other admissions).

Main Results:

  • Patients with CRP ≥ 30 mg/dL had significantly higher mortality and longer hospital stays.
  • Infectious diseases, particularly pneumonia, were the most common diagnoses (89.4%).
  • High CRP correlated with low albumin levels and a crude mortality rate of 17.6% in oncology patients with bacteremia.

Conclusions:

  • Extremely elevated CRP levels in children are strongly associated with severe infections and unfavorable clinical outcomes.
  • High mortality rates are particularly noted in pediatric oncology patients with extremely elevated CRP.
  • Pediatricians must recognize the critical implications of very high CRP levels for timely intervention.
Abstract

Keywords:
Bacterial infectionsC-reactive proteinChildrenInflammationMortality

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