EVALUATION OF PROCALCITONIN AND SERUM ALBUIN LEVELS AS EARLY INFLAMMATORY BIOMARKERS IN NEONATAL SEPSIS

Abstract

Prematurity is the leading cause of death globally, and the second largest contributor to all deaths under the age of 5. The aim of this study was to evaluate serum albumin levels and procalcitonin levels for the diagnosis and prognosis of preterm newborns with neonatal sepsis. In this study, we included 100 hospital admitted preterm newborns with the first 24 hours of life, hospitalized at the Intensive Care Unit at the University Children's Hospital-Skopje, for the time period between November 2018 until 30 April 2020. The preterm newborns have been divided into three groups according to albumin levels (>30, 25-30, or <25 g/l). There was a highly significant difference between the discharge diagnosis groups, regarding their serum albumin levels and Procalcitonin (PCT) levels, and there was a significant correlation between serum albumin level and PCT levels in preterm newborns, as well. Lower serum albumin levels might be associated with a poorer prognosis in neonatal sepsis. Serum albumin and procalcitoni levels have been proposed to be an early marker for the diagnosis of neonatal sepsis and a valuable follow-up tool.