The role of Copeptin in viral lower respiratory tract infections in child: A prospective case-control study

Lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality among children globally. Copeptin, released by the pituitary gland, serves as a biomarker for various conditions and, as a neuroendocrine stress hormone, is useful in acute conditions. This study aimed to determine the role of copeptin levels in LRTI in children and whether it can reliably predict pneumonia severity. This prospective case-control study was performed between April and October 2023. The study included four groups: (i) patients diagnosed with bronchiolitis (Group 1, n=25), (ii) patients diagnosed with mild to moderate pneumonia (Group 2, n=25), (iii) patients diagnosed with severe pneumonia (Group 3, n=25), and (iv) a control group (Group 4, n=26). Copeptin values differed significantly between the groups (p0.586 ng/ml. For the identification of patients with severe pneumonia versus those with mild to moderate pneumonia, copeptin exhibited a sensitivity of 97.9 % and specificity of 94.7 % with a cut-off value of >1.215 ng/ml. The copeptin level exhibited a positive correlation with fibrinogen and FAR levels while demonstrating a negative correlation with albumin levels (r=0.354, P=0.002; r=0.408, P