Table 2 Effectiveness of different variables at correctly predicting a diagnosis of bacterial vs. aseptic meningitis
|  | Sensitivity | Specificity | Accuracy | LR +  | LR− | AUC (95% CI) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Age and history | ||||||
 Age≥45 | 73.5 | 89.7 | 85.5 | 7.1 | 0.30 | 0.82 (0.73–0.90) |
 Immunocompromised host | 50.0 | 91.2 | 80.9 | 6.1 | 0.54 | 0.71 (0.62–0.80) |
 Shaking chills | 26.5 | 93.8 | 76.3 | 4.3 | 0.78 | 0.60 (0.52–0.68) |
Vital signs and physical examinations | ||||||
 Glasgow Coma Scale < 15 | 81.2 | 97.9 | 93.7 | 38.2 | 0.19 | 0.90 (0.83–0.97) |
 Pulse rate≥100(/min) | 76.4 | 80.0 | 79.1 | 3.8 | 0.29 | 0.78 (0.70–0.86) |
 Systolic BP≥120(mmHg) | 85.3 | 61.1 | 67.4 | 2.2 | 0.24 | 0.73 (0.65–0.81) |
 Respiratory rate≥22(/min) | 64.7 | 73.9 | 71.4 | 2.5 | 0.48 | 0.69 (0.60–0.79) |
 Neck stiffness | 84.9 | 50.5 | 59.4 | 1.7 | 0.30 | 0.68 (0.60–0.76) |
 Body temperature≥38.0(℃) | 69.7 | 61.1 | 63.3 | 1.8 | 0.50 | 0.65 (0.56–0.75) |
PCGS and laboratory data | ||||||
 CSF PCGS | 91.2 | 99.0 | 97.0 | 88.4 | 0.09 | 0.95 (0.90–1.00) |
 CSF monocyte≤20(%) | 85.3 | 83.3 | 83.9 | 5.1 | 0.18 | 0.84 (0.77–0.91) |
 CSF glucose/blood glucose ratio≤0.5 | 85.3 | 75.5 | 78.1 | 3.5 | 0.20 | 0.80 (0.73–0.88) |
 WBC≥10,000(/μL) | 78.8 | 76.8 | 77.3 | 3.4 | 0.28 | 0.78 (0.70–0.86) |
 CSF protein≥100(mg/dL) | 76.5 | 77.3 | 77.1 | 3.4 | 0.30 | 0.77 (0.69–0.85) |
 CRP≥1.0(mg/dL) | 77.4 | 76.0 | 76.4 | 3.2 | 0.30 | 0.77 (0.68–0.85) |
 CSF cell≥100(/μL) | 76.5 | 58.8 | 63.4 | 1.9 | 0.40 | 0.68 (0.59–0.76) |