Clinical significance of C-reactive protein values in antibiotic treatment for pyogenic liver abscess

AIM: To investigate the clinical significance of C-reactive protein (CRP) values in determining the endpoint of antibiotic treatment for liver abscess after drainage. METHODS: The endpoints of antibiotic treatment in 46 patients with pyogenic liver abscess after complete percutaneous drainage were assessed by performing a retrospective study. After complete percutaneous drainage, normal CRP values were considered as the endpoint in 18 patients (experimental group), and normal body temperature for at least 2 wk were considered as the endpoints in the other 28 patients (control group). RESULTS: The duration of antibiotic treatment after complete percutaneous drainage was 15.83 +/- 6.45 d and 24.25 +/- 8.18 d for the experimental and the control groups, respectively (P = 0.001), being significantly shorter in the experimental group than in the control group. The recurrence rate was 0% for both groups. However, we could not obtain the follow-up data about 3 patients in the control group. CONCLUSION: CRP values can be considered as an independent factor to determine the duration of the antibiotic treatment for pyogenic liver abscess after complete percutaneous drainage. (C) 2010 Baishideng. All rights reserved.