Rationale: Association of procalcitonin levels and blood cultures in critical illness patients on the ICU.~Objective: Procalcitonin is an acute phase protein. As part of the acute phase response, procalcitonin is produced during sepsis. Previous research shows that procalcitonin is a biomarker for bloodstream infection. However, there is still little known about the value of procalcitonin in diagnostics for micro-organism underlying a sepsis in ICU patients. In modern practice, blood cultures are taken when a patient is septic to determine the responsible micro-organism. When procalcitonin is a predictive value for bacteremia in the ICU, the number of blood cultures can be reduced.~Study design: An observational cohort study intervention: for each patient in the ICU blood cultures were taken, the procalcitonin level was determined. During 6 months 150 patients will be included.~Main study parameters/endpoints: this study will examine the predictive value of procalcitonin in blood cultures on the ICU.
Association between plasma procalcitonin levels and positive blood cultures in critical illness patients in the ICU.