Assessment of sTREM-1 as a Diagnostic Marker in Patients With Neutropenic Fever

Assessment of sTREM-1 as a Diagnostic Marker in Patients With Neutropenic Fever

The soluble triggering receptor expressed on myeloid cells-1 (sTREM-1) was an established biomarker useful for infection in non-neutropenic patients. In this study, we tested sTREM-1 in the patients with neutropenic fever. Pro-calcitonin (PCT) and C-reactive protein (CRP) were also measured. We planned to investigate and explore the role of sTREM-1 in early diagnosis of infection in patients with neutropenic fever.

Patients with hematological malignancies developed neutropenia after chemotherapy. We checked the serum level of sTREM-1 in patients with neutropenic fever. Those patients were classified to 2 groups: documented infection or low likelihood of infection. Their sTREM-1 level was measured and was compared with other biomarker such as CRP and procalcitonin. The value of sTREM-1 for diagnosis of infection in patients with neutropenic fever was thus evaluated.

Inclusion Criteria:

• chemotherapy-related neutropenia (granulocytes < 0.5 × 109/l or leukocytes < 1 × 109/l) and fever (body temperature > 38.0°C over a 6 hour observation period or body temperature ≥ 38.5°C once.

Exclusion Criteria:

• prolonged fever before presenting for admission,
• antibiotics therapy in the past 72 hours,
• more than two sites of infectious focus,
• concomitant solid organ malignancy and blast in hemogram.