Higher CRP and D-dimer levels associated with cerebral infarction in children with Mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia

This retrospective cohort study evaluated 2,947 children diagnosed with Mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia to assess risk factors for cerebral infarction. The investigation utilized propensity score matching to reduce potential confounding and employed Firth’s penalized logistic regression as an exploratory analysis. Follow-up duration was not reported in the available data.

Researchers compared children with higher levels of C-reactive protein (CRP) and D-dimer against those with lower levels. The primary outcome was the occurrence of cerebral infarction. The study design assessed associations rather than establishing causality between biomarker levels and neurological complications.

C-reactive protein was significantly associated with the occurrence of cerebral infarction, with an odds ratio of 1.08 and a p-value of 0.003. D-dimer also showed a significant positive association, yielding an odds ratio of 1.00026 and a p-value of 0.007. The combination of CRP and D-dimer demonstrated good discriminatory performance for cerebral infarction, with an area under the curve of 0.920 and p < 0.05.

Safety data regarding adverse events, serious adverse events, discontinuations, and tolerability were not reported. The authors noted that associations were assessed but causality was not explicitly claimed. Certainty was limited as exploratory analysis was performed.

Clinical relevance remains uncertain due to the observational nature of the evidence. These biomarkers may warrant monitoring, but definitive treatment implications require further investigation.