Analysis of C-reactive Protein Level as a Monitoring Tool in Patients with Odontogenic Space Infection: A Prospective Clinical Study

Aim: The aim of this study was to do analysis of C-reactive protein (CRP) level as an efficacy of treatment in odontogenic space infection in indoor patients to measure the severity of infection so that medicinal treatment response can be assessed and subsequently to avoid excessive postoperative antibiotic treatment given to the patients. Materials and methods: A total number of 40 indoor patients of 17–50 years of age were analyzed for CRP levels as monitoring tools in odontogenic fascial space infection in the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, PGIDS, in collaboration with the Department of Microbiology, PGIMS, to measure the severity of infection and to assess medicinal treatment response. Results: The severity of infection and effectiveness of the treatment regime were determined using the correlation between clinical parameters and laboratory values of serum CRP, which explained the direct and linear relation between CRP and size of swelling, with CRP being a significant predictor of size of swelling ( p < 0.05). The data for mouth opening explained an inverse relation between CRP and mouth opening. Conclusion: The findings of this prospective analysis indicate that CRP can be served as effective markers for determining the severity of fascial space infections of odontogenic origin. Serum CRP reflects the immediate effect of the treatment and acts as a significant predictor of the severity of infection and effectiveness of the treatment regime, which can be incorporated as a monitoring tool for managing patients with fascial space infections of odontogenic origin. Clinical significance: Looking at the scarcity of studies pertaining to CRP levels in odontogenic space infection patients, this prospective analysis study was conducted to monitor the levels of CRP level in odontogenic space infection patients to throw further light in this direction.