Study on the Usefulness of APR Scores from the Viewpoint of Proinflammatory Cytokines

BACKGROUND Delayed diagnosis and treatment of newborn infection adversely impact outcomes. Clinical laboratory parameters have aimed to obtain the most correct and prompt diagnosis and treatment of this disease. This study simultaneously observed changes over time in APR as well as proinflammatory cytokines and anti-proinflammatory cytokines and aims to clarify usefulness of APR scores. METHODS We evaluated the usefulness of acute phase reactants (APR) in 46 newborns whose serum up to age 7 days had been stored, with comparison of three types (Group I: infection 15, Group F: fetal inflammatory response syndrome 17, and Group C: control 14) of APR-based scores, those of C-reactive protein (CRP), alpha1-acid glycoprotein (AGP), and haptoglobin (Hp), with proinflammatory cytokine levels. APR scores for CRP, AGP, and Hp and the levels of the proinflammatory cytokines IL-1β, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, and TNFα were determined. RESULTS The cytokine levels started to increase from age 0 days and then decreased rapidly. The three APR scores, CRP, AG, and Hp, were elevated at age 0 days and then gradually decreased in infection (Group I) and fetal inflammatory response syndrome (Group F). The duration of antibiotic administration according to APR scores was significantly shorter in Group F than in Group I. CONCLUSION This study demonstrated APR scores to be more useful for deciding whether antibiotics should be discontinued than proinflammatory cytokine levels.