Procalcitonin: in Lobar and Non-Lobar Pneumonia in Children

Introduction:  To investigate the value of procalcitonin (PCT) in lobar and non-lobar pneumonia in children. Materials and Methods: 80 children with pneumonia were included. 20 healthy children were selected as control. Lobar and non-lobar pneumonia were recognized. The serum level of C reactive protein (CRP), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), leukocytes and PCT were measured. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS windows program. Results: Among the 80 children 39 cases (48.75%) were female and 41 cases (51.25%) were male with the average of 17.29±2.43 months. 7 patients (8.75%) were diagnosed with lobar pneumonia. Cough, tachypnea and Crackles were more common symptoms in lobar pneumonic patients. Leukocytosis (more than 15000/microliter) was more prominent in pneumonic patients versus control as well as lobar pneumonia versus non-lobar (p<0.05). The CRP with 3+ level was prominent in lobar pneumonic patients (p=0.02). The mean of ESR in lobar group was higher than non-lobar group (p=0.001). The PCT level of 2ng/mL could consider as cut off point of lobar and non-lobar pneumonia. The PCT level of 0.5ng/mL could consider as cut off point between pneumonic and healthy children. Conclusion: Serum level of PCT is higher in lobar pneumonia than non-lobar pneumonia in children with cut off point of 2ng/mL.