Recently, neutrophil CD64 (nCD64) expression appears to be a promising marker of bacterial infections. The aim of this meta-analysis was to assess the accuracy of nCD64 expression for the diagnosis of sepsis in critically ill adult patients.
We systematically searched PubMed, Embase, ISI Web of Knowledge, and the Cochrane Library from inception to May 19, 2014, and reference lists of identified primary studies. Studies were included if they assessed the accuracy of nCD64 expression for sepsis diagnosis in adult patients and provided sufficient information to construct a 2 X 2 contingency table.
A total of 8 studies including 1986 patients fulfilled the inclusion criteria for the final analysis. The pooled sensitivity and specificity was 0.76 (95 % confidence interval (CI), 0.73 to 0.78) and 0.85 (95 % CI, 0.82 to 0.87), respectively. The positive likelihood ratio, negative likelihood ratio and diagnostic odds ratio were 8.15 (95 % CI, 3.82 to 17.36), 0.16 (95 % CI, 0.09 to 0.30), and 60.41 (95 % CI, 15.87 to 229.90), respectively. The area under the SROC of nCD64 expression with Q* value were 0.95 (Q* = 0.89).
On the basis of our meta-analysis, nCD64 expression is a helpful marker for early diagnosis of sepsis in critically ill patients. The results of the test should not be used alone to diagnose sepsis, but should be interpreted in combination with medical history, physical examination, and other test results.