Procalcitonin Vs C- Reactive Protein in Early Detection of Intrauterine Infection in Premature Rupture of Membranes

摘要

Intrauterine infections represent a significant threat to fetal well-being and pregnancy outcome .The diagnosis of early onset neonatal infection remains one of the greatest challenges in perinatal medicine. At birth the diagnosis must be based on the history of pregnancy and take into account a number of risk factors, such as preterm premature rupture of membranes with, usually, late recogniced subclinical intrauterine infection. Early onset neonatal infection is associated with an ascending infection from the cervix and the intact membranes during pregnancy act as an effective barrier against infection of the amniotic fluid (1). Intrauterine infection at any time during pregnancy is an important risk factor for neonatal sepsis and is a frequent cause of mortality and morbidity in the newborn infants.If promptly started, antibiotic therapy can reduce its sequelae and improve the prognosis. However, the number of tests that obstetrician can rely on for the early diagnosis of infection is quite limited. Culture tests are not immune from the risk of contamination and the measurement of interleukins in the amniotic fluid and maternal blood serum is not yet routine.