According to a report published in the February issue of Archives of Surgery, monitoring the levels of procalcitonin in the blood of patients with peritonitis may help identify patients at increased risk of organ failure and death.

"Procalcitonin concentrations were most closely correlated with the development of septic multi-organ dysfunction syndrome, with peak levels occurring early after symptom onset or during the immediate post-operative course," the authors write. "No such correlation was observed for C-reactive protein."

The authors of the study suggest that the procalcitonin level is a fast and reliable tool in assessing severe septic complications particularly in patients with secondary peritonitis.

Source: JAMA