Does adherence to an established diagnostic threshold for ventilator-associated pneumonia contribute to low false-negative rates in trauma patients?
Continued adherence to the diagnostic threshold of equal to or greater than 10 for quantitative BAL in trauma patients has maintained a low incidence of FN BALs and reduced patient charges without impacting mortality. The purported benefit of a lower threshold is not supported. In addition, the potential sequelae of increased resistant organisms, antibiotic-related complications, and costs associated with prolonged unnecessary antibiotic exposure are minimized.
DCs are a source of complement proteins whose synthesis may be regulated in response to different inflammatory stimuli.