A real-world assessment of procalcitonin combined with antimicrobial stewardship in a community ICU

PURPOSE: We evaluated the feasibility and impact of PCT-guided antibiotic duration combined with an established antibiotic stewardship program (ASP) in a community hospital intensive care unit (ICU). METHODS: We implemented daily PCT levels for ICU patients receiving antibiotics. Our protocol recommended stopping antibiotic therapy if PCT met an absolute or relative stopping threshold. We evaluated the adherence to stopping criteria within 48 h, antibiotic use [days of therapy (DOT) per 1000 patient-days (PD)], length of stay and ICU-mortality. We performed interrupted time series analysis to compare 24 months before and 12 months after implementation. RESULTS: A total of 297 antibiotic courses were monitored with PCT in 217 patients. Protocol adherence was 34% (absolute threshold: 39%, relative threshold: 12%). Antibiotic use pre-PCT was 935 DOTs/1000 PDs and post-PCT was 817 DOTs/1000 PDs (RR_adj 0.73, 95% CI: 0.62 to 0.86). No statistically significant changes in clinical outcomes were noted. CONCLUSION: In the context of an established ASP in a community hospital ICU, PCT monitoring was feasible and associated with an adjusted overall decrease of 27% in antibiotic use with no adverse impact on clinical outcomes. Incorporating PCT testing to guide antibiotic duration can be successful if integrated into workflow and paired with ASP guidance.