Measurement of interleukin 8 in combination with C-reactive protein reduced unnecessary antibiotic therapy in newborn infants: A multicenter, randomized, controlled trial

Abstract

Objective. Neonatal bacterial infections carry a high mortality when diagnosed late. Early diagnosis is difficult because initial clinical signs are nonspecific. Consequently, physicians frequently prescribe antibiotic treatment to newborn infants for fear of missing a life-threatening infection. This study was designed to test the hypotheses that a diagnostic algorithm that includes measurements of interleukin 8 (IL-8) and C-reactive protein (CRP) 1) reduces antibiotic therapy and 2) does not result in more initially missed infections compared with standard management that does not include an IL-8 measurement. Methods. Term and preterm infants who were 70 pg/mL and/or CRP was >10 mg/L (IL-8..