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Procalcitonin-guided antibiotic therapy in acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: An updated

Zhuying Li¹, Xingxing Yuan^2,3, Ling Yu⁴

¹Department of Respiratory Medicine, First Affiliated Hospital of Heilongjiang University of Traditional Chinese Medicine.

|August 9, 2019

Abstract

Background:

The benefit of a procalcitonin (PCT)-guided antibiotic strategy in acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (AECOPD) remains uncertain.

Objectives:

This updated meta-analysis was performed to reevaluate the therapeutic potential of PCT-guided antibiotic therapy in AECOPD.

Data Sources:

We searched PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, and ClinicalTrials.gov up to February 2019 to identify randomized controlled trials (RCTs) investigating the role of PCT-guided antibiotic strategies in treating adult patients with AECOPD. Relative risk (RR) or mean differences (MD) with accompanying 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated with a random-effects model.

Results:

Eight RCTs with a total of 1376 participants were included. The results suggested that a PCT-guided antibiotic strategy reduced antibiotic prescriptions (RR: 0.55; 95% CI: 0.39-0.76; P = .0003). However, antibiotic exposure duration (MD: -1.34; 95% CI: -2.83-0.16; P = .08), antibiotic use after discharge (RR: 1.61; 95% CI: 0.61-4.23; P = .34), clinical success (RR: 1.02; 95% CI: 0.96-1.08; P = .47), all-cause mortality (RR: 1.05; 95% CI: 0.72-1.55; P = .79), exacerbation at follow-up (RR: 0.97; 95% CI: 0.80-1.18; P = .78), readmission at follow-up (RR: 1.12; 95% CI: 0.82-1.53; P = .49), length of hospital stay (MD: -0.36; 95% CI: -1.36-0.64; P = .48), and adverse events (RR: 1.33; 95% CI: 0.79-2.23; P = .28) were similar in both groups.

Implications Of Key Findings:

A PCT-guided antibiotic strategy is associated with fewer antibiotic prescriptions, and has similar efficacy and safety compared with standard antibiotic therapy in AECOPD patients.

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