TY - JOUR T1 - New clinical prediction model for early recognition of sepsis in adult primary care patients: a prospective diagnostic cohort study of development and external validation JF - British Journal of General Practice JO - Br J Gen Pract DO - 10.3399/BJGP.2021.0520 SP - BJGP.2021.0520 AU - Feike J Loots AU - Marleen Smits AU - Rogier M Hopstaken AU - Kevin Jenniskens AU - Fleur H Schroeten AU - Ann van den Bruel AU - Alma C van de Pol AU - Jan Jelrik Oosterheert AU - Hjalmar Bouma AU - Paul Little AU - Michael Moore AU - Sanne van Delft AU - Douwe Rijpsma AU - Joris Holkenborg AU - Bas CT van Bussel AU - Ralph Laven AU - Dennis CJJ Bergmans AU - Jacobien J Hoogerwerf AU - Gideon HP Latten AU - Eefje GPM de Bont AU - Paul Giesen AU - Annemarie den Harder AU - Ron Kusters AU - Arthur RH van Zanten AU - Theo JM Verheij Y1 - 2022/02/16 UR - http://bjgp.org/content/early/2022/04/19/BJGP.2021.0520.abstract N2 - Background Recognising patients who need immediate hospital treatment for sepsis while simultaneously limiting unnecessary referrals is challenging for GPs.Aim To develop and validate a sepsis prediction model for adult patients in primary care.Design and setting This was a prospective cohort study in four out-of-hours primary care services in the Netherlands, conducted between June 2018 and March 2020.Method Adult patients who were acutely ill and received home visits were included. A total of nine clinical variables were selected as candidate predictors, next to the biomarkers C-reactive protein, procalcitonin, and lactate. The primary endpoint was sepsis within 72 hours of inclusion, as established by an expert panel. Multivariable logistic regression with backwards selection was used to design an optimal model with continuous clinical variables. The added value of the biomarkers was evaluated. Subsequently, a simple model using single cut-off points of continuous variables was developed and externally validated in two emergency department populations.Results A total of 357 patients were included with a median age of 80 years (interquartile range 71–86), of which 151 (42%) were diagnosed with sepsis. A model based on a simple count of one point for each of six variables (aged >65 years; temperature >38°C; systolic blood pressure ≤110 mmHg; heart rate >110/min; saturation ≤95%; and altered mental status) had good discrimination and calibration (C-statistic of 0.80 [95% confidence interval = 0.75 to 0.84]; Brier score 0.175). Biomarkers did not improve the performance of the model and were therefore not included. The model was robust during external validation.Conclusion Based on this study’s GP out-of-hours population, a simple model can accurately predict sepsis in acutely ill adult patients using readily available clinical parameters. ER -