Table 1.
Background characteristics of 11 patients with fungal bloodstream infection.
Table 2.
Characteristics and laboratory data of 11 patients with fungemia.
Fig 1.
Relationship of the CRP, PCT, and P-SEP concentrations with the SOFA scores.
There is a significant association between the PCT levels and the SOFA scores before treatment, but not between CRP and SOFA scores (A, B). The SOFA scores have the strongest positive correlation with the P-SEP concentrations (r = 0.89, p < 0.001, C). The increase from baseline in the SOFA scores has the strongest positive correlation with the P-SEP levels, unlike the others (D–F). Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient was used to examine the relationship between the values and SOFA scores. CRP: C-reactive protein, PCT: procalcitonin, P-SEP: presepsin, SOFA score: Sequential Organ Failure Assessment score, Ln: natural logarithm. *SOFA scores were defined based on laboratory data on day 1 in 9 patients and on day 2 in 2 patients (#8 and #11).
Fig 2.
Changes in the presepsin levels in the first week of fungal bloodstream infection.
The P-SEP levels increased or increased again after an initial drop in patients who had poor improvement (red lines). In patient #1, the P-SEP levels decreased on day 2 but increased again with bacterial infection on days 3 and 4. In patient #6, P-SEP levels decreased on days 2 and 3, increased again during a catheter-related bloodstream infection on day 5, and returned to normal after removal of the catheter on day 7. Patient #9 died of fungemia on day 4 and had continuous increment in P-SEP levels.
Fig 3.
Presepsin levels in the whole blood incubated separately with C. albicans and E. coli.
Compared with the whole blood sample incubated with LPS, those that were separately cultured with C. albicans and E. coli had significant increases in P-SEP levels in the supernatant. The increase in P-SEP levels was not different between the C. albicans and E. coli cultures. MH, Mueller–Hinton broth; SD, Sabouraud–Dextrose broth.