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      Sepsis and the B·R·A·H·M·S Procalcitonin (PCT) Assay

      When seconds count, accurate results can make the difference between life and death

      Sepsis is a leading cause of death in hospitals worldwide, placing a significant health and economic burden on both patients and healthcare institutions. An early and accurate diagnosis can save precious time, expense, and most importantly, lives. The Siemens Healthineers B·R·A·H·M·S Procalcitonin (PCT) Assay can aid healthcare providers in the diagnosis of sepsis.

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      COVID-19 and Sepsis

      Procalcitonin (PCT) is a biomarker widely used to assess risk in the setting of bacterial infection for progression to severe sepsis and septic shock in conjunction with other laboratory findings and clinical assessment. Procalcitonin can be used as an aid in identification of patients at lower or higher risk of 28-day mortality after diagnosis with severe sepsis due to bacterial coinfection. It has also been shown to be a valuable tool in the current COVID-19 pandemic, including as a recommended test for potential clinical significance in recognizing bacterial (super) infection.1,2

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      PCT Literature Compendium

      Following four decades of extensive clinical studies, PCT is now recognized as a marker for assessing sepsis risk and progression, and as a tool for guiding antibiotic therapy. The ten articles comprising this compendium address these usages in different clinical care settings for pathologies of varying severity, and also provide evidence of the financial benefit of using PCT.

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      B·R·A·H·M·S Procalcitonin (PCT) Assay
      Atellica IM Analyzer and ADVIA Centaur Immunoassay Systems

      PCT values rise in relation to sepsis severity, providing clinicians with a valuable tool for risk assessment of critically ill patients diagnosed with severe sepsis or septic shock. Read the educational brochure on Aiding Differential Diagnosis with the Siemens Healthineers B·R·A·H·M·S PCT Assay.

      1Huang Y et al., medRxiv preprint 2020, doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2020.02.27.20029009
      2IFCC Information Guide on COVID-19 – September 28 updates, DOI: https://www.ifcc.org/ifcc-news/2020-03-26-ifcc-information-guide-on-covid-19/ . Accessed February 26, 2021.

      PCT is not available for use on the ADVIA Centaur XP/XPT and CP in the US.