Procalcitonin: a biomarker of sepsis

Sepsis and severe sepsis are one of the leading causes of significant morbidity and mortality among the critical patients despite the use of broad spectrum antibiotics and fluid resuscitation therapies. Microbiological cultures which are considered the gold standard to diagnose sepsis require time. The rapid diagnosis of sepsis still remains a challenge for the clinicians thus requiring the role of a biomarker for early and rapid detection and also the prognosis in septicemia. Procalcitonin has been proposed as sepsis biomarker as it rises early in sepsis and has also been found to have a significant role in antibiotic stewardship and monitoring the efficacy of the treatment. The level of procalcitonin along with the clinical and other laboratory parameters can help in early detection and management of sepsis. This short review intends to provide an overview of the procalcitonin and its importance.