Abstract:

Objective To investigate the relationship between plasma procalcitonin（PCT） level and cardiac function in acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease（AECOPD） patients with heart failure（HF）. Methods A total of 40 patients with AECOPD,40 patients with AECOPD combined with HF,40 patients with stable-phase chronic obstructive pulmonary disease（COPD） and 40 healthy subjects were enrolled. AECOPD+HF group was classified into 3 subgroups by New York Heart Association（NYHA） cardiac function classification,including Ⅱ,Ⅲ and Ⅳ subgroups. The levels of plasma PCT and B-type natriuretic peptide（BNP）were determined. The correlation of plasma PCT level and Tei-index was analyzed.Results Plasma BNP and PCT levels from high to low were in AECOPD+HF group,AECOPD group,stable-phase COPD group and healthy control group. There was statistical significance among the groups （P<0.05）. The levels of plasma PCT and BNP in AECOPD+HF group increased with NYHA cardiac function classification,and there was statistical significance among different grades（P<0.05）. Plasma PCT level was positively correlated with BNP and Tei-index（r=0.48 and 0.67,P<0.05）. Multivariate regression analysis showed that PCT was a risk factor for AECOPD {odds ratio（OR）[95% confidence interval（CI）]=1.541（1.361-2.012）}. PCT and BNP were risk factors for AECOPD combined with HF [OR（95%CI）=1.337（1.129-1.534） and 1.656（1.412-2.192）]. Conclusions Plasma PCT level could reflect the severity of cardiac function damage in patients with AECOPD combined with HF.

Key words: Procalcitonin, B-type natriuretic peptide, Acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, Heart failure