Inflammatory biomarkers are not useful for predicting prognosis in nursing and healthcare-associated pneumonia: A prospective, cohort study

Whether inflammatory biomarkers including procalcitonin (PCT) and C-reactive protein (CRP) are useful for predicting prognosis in nursing and healthcare-associated pneumonia (NHCAP) is unknown. The aim of the present study was to investigate the utility of serial PCT and CRP measurements for predicting prognosis and treatment efficacy for hospitalized NHCAP patients. This prospective, observational, cohort study enrolled consecutive NHCAP patients hospitalized at Kurashiki Central Hospital from October 2010 to September 2017. PCT and CRP were measured twice, once on admission and again within 48–72 h after admission. The primary outcome was 30-day all-cause mortality, and the secondary outcome was initial treatment failure. A total of 299 patients were included. The 30-day mortality rate was 8.4% (25/299), and the initial treatment failure rate was 15.4% (46/299). On multivariate analysis, performance status [odds ratio (OR) (95% confidence interval (CI)): 2.25 (1.34–3.77), P = 0.002], temperature [OR (95%CI): 0.53 (0.32–0.88), P = 0.02], heart rate [OR (95%CI): 1.03 (1.01–1.06), P = 0.007], albumin [OR (95%CI): 0.42 (0.18–0.95), P = 0.04], and blood urea nitrogen [OR (95%CI): 1.02 (1.00–1.05), P = 0.04] were significant prognostic factors, and CRP D3 [OR (95%CI): 1.07 (1.02–1.11), P = 0.003] and PSI [OR (95%CI): 1.01 (1.00–1.02), P = 0.01] were the predictors of initial treatment failure. Consecutive measurements of PCT and CRP were not significant predictors of 30-day mortality. Inflammatory biomarkers including PCT and CRP were not useful for predicting prognosis and treatment efficacy in NHCAP patients. We should carefully evaluate the patients’ vital signs and comorbidities when managing NHCAP patients.