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Objectives: Whether the maternal vitamin D deficiency is associated with preeclampsia is still an argument. We aimed to assess the association between maternal serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] concentrations and risk of preeclampsia in a Chinese population and systematically evaluate published evidence on this association.Methods: We conducted a nested case-control study involving 122 pregnant women with preeclampsia and 488 pregnant women whose blood pressure was within the normal range (as controls). For further meta-analysis, 20 studies and our study were included for the final pooled analysis, involving 39,031 participants and 3305 preeclampsia cases with various ethnicities.Results: The results showed that 65.6% of women with preeclampsia had serum 25(OH)D concentrations <50.0 nmol L-1 compared with 55.3% of women in controls. The 25(OH)D concentrations were significantly lower in women with preeclampsia than controls [Median (IQR), women with preeclampsia versus controls: 43.3 (35.5, 55.2) versus 47.5 (37.6, 60.4) nmol L-1, p = .014]. For women with 25(OH)D concentrations <50.0 nmol L-1, they had a 65% increase in preeclampsia risk (95% CI = 1.02-2.69), as compared with women with 25(OH)D concentrations from 50.0 to 74.9 nmol L-1. Further, meta-analysis showed that low 25(OH)D concentrations were associated with a significantly increased risk of preeclampsia by 62% (pooled OR = 1.62, 95%CI = 1.36-1.94), and the risk effect of low 25(OH)D concentrations existed in most subgroups.Conclusions: Low 25(OH)D concentration in pregnancy was significantly associated with preeclampsia risk, and it may serve as biomarkers for the surveillance of high-risk pregnant women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A meta-analysis was performed to assess the accuracy of the procalcitonin (PCT) test for diagnosing neonatal sepsis. The major databases, MEDLINE, EMBASE and the Cochrane Library were searched for studies published between January 1996 and May 2009 that evaluated PCT as a diagnostic marker for neonatal sepsis and provided sufficient data to calculate sensitivity and specificity. Twenty-two studies were included in the analysis. Trials that evaluated the PCT test for the diagnosis of early-onset neonatal sepsis at different time points (birth, 0–12 h, 12–24 h, and 24–48 h) and late-onset neonatal sepsis (LONS) all showed moderate accuracy ( Q* = 0.79, 0.86, 0.81, 0.82, and 0.77, respectively). The PCT test was more accurate than the C-reactive protein (CRP) test for the diagnosis of LONS. A sensitivity analysis found that differences in PCT assay producer, gestational age and severity of sepsis in the study population may partially explain the between-studies heterogeneity. The PCT test showed moderate accuracy in diagnosing neonatal sepsis, regardless of differences in diagnostic criteria and time points for testing. For the diagnosis of LONS, the PCT test showed better accuracy than the CRP test. PCT is a valuable additional tool for the diagnosis of neonatal sepsis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]