Usefulness of procalcitonin at admission as a risk-stratifying biomarker for 50-day in-hospital mortality among patients with community-acquired bloodstream infection: an observational cohort study

PURPOSE: To assess the association between plasma procalcitonin concentration at hospital admission and the risk of 50-day in-hospital mortality among patients with community-acquired bloodstream infections. METHODS: We carried out a retrospective, observational cohort study with all consecutive patients with bacteriologically confirmed community-acquired bloodstream infections hospitalized between 2006 and 2012. We aimed to assess the association between plasma procalcitonin at admission and 50-day in-hospital mortality. Patients were included in the analysis if they had undergone a blood culture test within 48 hours of hospitalization with a concomitant procalcitonin assay (time < 12 hours between the two tests). Inclusion in the study began on the day of hospital admission, and each patient was followed until death, discharge from the hospital, or last known follow-up in the 50 days following hospital admission. The endpoint was the occurrence of all-cause in-hospital mortality during the 50 days following hospital admission. RESULTS: During the 7-year study period, 1593 patients were admitted to one of the healthcare facilities of the University Hospital of Nancy from home or through the emergency department and had positive blood cultures and concomitant procalcitonin assays. Among the patients, 452 met the selection criteria and were analyzed. In ROC analysis, procalcitonin at baseline was significantly associated with 50-day in-hospital mortality, with an optimal threshold > 4.24 ng/mL. A baseline procalcitonin > 4.24 ng/mL was independently associated with an increased risk of in-hospital mortality (multivariable logistic regression: odds ratio, 2.58; 95% CI, 1.57–4.25; P = 0.0002; Cox proportional hazard regression: hazard ratio, 2.01; 95% CI, 1.30–3.11; P = 0.002). In sensitivity analyses, baseline procalcitonin quartiles were independently associated with 50-day in-hospital mortality (multivariable logistic regression: odds ratio, 1.47; 95% CI, 1.17–1.85; P = 0.001; Cox proportional hazard regression: hazard ratio, 1.31; 95% CI, 1.07–1.60; P = 0.008). The independent associations between baseline procalcitonin and the risk of 50-day in-hospital mortality were maintained after adjusting for C-reactive protein and sepsis status at admission. CONCLUSION: Our data provide the first evidence of the usefulness of plasma procalcitonin at admission as a risk-stratifying biomarker for predicting 50-day in-hospital mortality among patients with community-acquired bloodstream infections. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s40364-023-00450-3.