Plasma brain natriuretic peptide, platelet parameters, and cardiopulmonary function in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

Abstract

BACKGROUND Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a chronic respiratory disease with worldwide occurrence and high disability and mortality rate. It occursmostly in the elderly population with pulmonary heart disease, type II respiratoryfailure, and other serious complications.AIMTo investigate the correlation of plasma brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) andplatelet parameters with cardiac function and pulmonary hypertension in patientswith COPD and pulmonary heart disease.METHODSFrom June 2016 to June 2019, 52 patients with COPD-pulmonary heart disease(pulmonary heart disease group), 30 patients with COPD (COPD group), and 30healthy individuals (control group) in our hospital were enrolled in the study. Thepulmonary heart disease group was further divided into subgroups according tocardiac function classification and pulmonary artery pressure. Plasma BNP andplatelet parameters were estimated and compared among each group andsubgroup. The correlation of plasma BNP and platelet parameters with cardiacfunction classification and pulmonary artery pressure was then analyzed.RESULTSIn the pulmonary heart disease group, the COPD group, and the control group,the levels of plasma BNP, platelet distribution width (PDW), and mean plateletvolume (MPV) showed a decreasing trend (P < 0.05), while an increasing trendwas found in platelet count (PLT) and plateletcrit (PCT) levels among the threegroups (P < 0.05). In the pulmonary hypertension mild, moderate, and severesubgroups, the levels of plasma BNP, PDW, and MPV showed an increasing trend(P < 0.05), while a decreasing trend was observed in PLT levels (P < 0.05);however, PCT levels showed no significant difference among the three subgroups (P > 0.05). In the cardiac function grade I, II, III, and IV subgroups, the levels ofplasma BNP, PDW, and MPV showed an increasing trend (P < 0.05), while adecreasing trend was noted in PLT and PCT levels among the four subgroups (P <0.05). Correlation analysis showed that the levels of plasma BNP, PDW, and MPVin patients with pulmonary heart disease were positively correlated with theirpulmonary artery pressure (P < 0.05), while PLT was negatively correlated withtheir pulmonary artery pressure (P < 0.05). Moreover, plasma BNP, PDW, andMPV levels were positively correlated with cardiac function grade (P < 0.05) ofthese patients, while PLT and PCT levels were negatively correlated with theircardiac function grade (P < 0.05).CONCLUSIONPlasma BNP and PLT parameters are significantly correlated with the cardiacfunction and pulmonary hypertension in patients with COPD and pulmonaryheart disease, indicating that these parameters have high clinical relevance inreflecting the health condition of these patients and for guiding their treatment