Comparison of Procalcitonin Level in Normal Population and in Chronic Kidney Disease Patients Who Don't Have Infection

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a life threatening condition with high risk of pre-term death and need for dialysis. It is defined as kidney damage that has continued for more than 3 months as characterized by structural or functional abnormalities of the kidney, with or without decreased glomerular filtration rate (GFR). It is also defined as GFR < 60mL/min/1.73 m2 for more than 3 months, with or without structural kidney damage.

The PCT level in healthy individual without infection is below the limit of detection (0.01 ng/mL), and it is significantly elevated under the stimulation of pathogens. However, due to the pre-existing endogenous inflammation that occurs in CKD patients and the impaired kidney clearance, the reference range that applies to the general population may not be appropriate for diagnosing infections in CKD patients. More recently, debate has continued regarding whether the PCT level is increased in CKD patients without infection, and the optimal reference for CKD patients remains undetermined