A low serum uric acid concentration predicts a poor prognosis in adult patients with candidemia

This study aimed to determine the relation of serum uric acid (UA) level with outcomes in adults with candidemia. Medical records of patients with candidemia treated from 2014 to 2017 were retrospectively reviewed. Patients were age- and sex-matched with healthy control subjects. The associations of UA and cystatin C (CysC) levels with diagnosis and prognosis of candidemia were determined. Sixty-four patients with candidemia (13 females and 51 males; mean age 48.5 years) and 64 matched control subjects were included. The median UA level of patients with candidemia was 255 mu mol/L (range, 158-395 mu mol/L), and of healthy controls was 398 mu mol/L (range, 345-450 mu mol/L) (P < 0.001). The median CysC level of patients with candidemia was 1.07 mg/L (range, 0.89-1.59 mg/L), and of the healthy controls was 0.82 mg/L (range, 0.74-0.95 mg/L) (P < 0.001). Patients with a favorable prognosis had significantly higher serum UA levels than those with a poor prognosis (181 mu mol/L vs 344 mu mol/L; P = 0.001). It was indicated that the estimated OR for UA was significantly > 1 (P = 0.009), and the AUC was 0.734. In summary, a lower serum UA level is associated with a diagnosis of candidemia, and a poor outcome.