Diagnostic utility of the soluble triggering receptor expressed on myeloid cells-1 in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid from patients with bilateral lung infiltrates

BACKGROUND: Differential diagnosis of patients with bilateral lung infiltrates remains a difficult problem for intensive care clinicians. Here we evaluate the diagnostic role of soluble triggering receptor expressed on myeloid cells-1 (sTREM-1) in bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) specimens from patients with bilateral lung infiltrates. METHODS: We conducted a prospective observational study on 80 patients with bilateral lung infiltrates with clinical suspicion of infectious pneumonia. Patients were categorized into three groups: bacterial or fungal infection, intracellular or viral infection, and noninfectious inflammatory disease. sTREM-1 concentrations were measured, and BAL fluid and Clinical Pulmonary Infection Score (CPIS) were analyzed. RESULTS: The sTREM-1 concentration was significantly increased in patients with bacterial or fungal pneumonia (n = 29, 521.2 +/- 94.7 pg/ml), compared with that in patients with viral pneumonia, atypical pneumonia or tuberculosis (n = 14, 92.9 +/- 20.0 pg/ml) or noninfectious inflammatory disease (n = 37, 92.8 +/- 10.7 pg/ml). The concentration of sTREM-1 in BAL fluid, but not CPIS, was an independent predictor of bacterial or fungal pneumonia, and a cutoff value of more than 184 pg/ml yielded a diagnostic sensitivity of 86% and a specificity of 90%. CONCLUSION: The sTREM-1 level in BAL fluid from patients with bilateral lung infiltrates is a potential marker for the differential diagnosis of pneumonia due to extracellular bacteria.