Abstract
Background Sepsis is the primary cause of death in children, and it is crucial to identify patients at high risk of mortality early on in order to provide intensive monitoring and management in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU). Objective The objective of this study was to assess the predictive value of routinely used sepsis indicators, including neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL), urea to creatinine ratio (urea/Cr), and prothrombin time and international normalized ratio (PT/INR), in predicting death in critically unwell children. Patients and methods A total of 75 children were included in the research conducted at the PICU of Minia University. Among them, 21 (28%) were released as survivors, while the remaining 54 (72%) unfortunately passed away. All participating children were subjected to serum NGAL, urea/Cr, and PT/INR measurements during the first 24 hours of hospitalization. The severity of sepsis was assessed using the Pediatric Risk of Mortality (PRISM) III score. Results The NGAL, prothrombin, urea, and creatinine levels were considerably elevated in the group of individuals who died compared to those who survived (P < 0.001, 0.007, 0.028, and 0.032, respectively). However, no significant difference was found between survivors and deceased children in terms of the PT/INR ratio and urea/Cr ratio. When predicting mortality, NGAL with a cutoff point of more than 990 had a sensitivity of 100% and a specificity of 35%. Similarly, the PRISM score with a cutoff point greater than 18 had a sensitivity of 83.3% and a specificity of 42.9%. Conclusion Serum NGAL is reliable in the early prediction of mortality in children admitted with sepsis.