Abstract
BackgroundThis study aimed to investigate clinical characteristics of Korean PAP patients and to examine the potential risk factors of PAP.MethodsWe retrospectively reviewed medical records of 78 Korean PAP patients diagnosed between 1993 and 2014. Patients were classified into two groups according to the presence/absence of treatment (lavage). Clinical and laboratory features were compared between the two groups.ResultsOf the total 78 PAP patients, 60% were male and median age at diagnosis was 47.5 years. Fifty three percent were ever smokers (median 22 pack-years) and 48% had a history of dust exposure (metal 26.5%, stone or sand 20.6%, chemical or paint 17.7%, farming dust 14.7%, diesel 14.7%, textile 2.9%, and wood 2.9%). A history of cigarette smoking or dust exposure was present in 70.5% of the total PAP patients, with 23% having both of them. Patients who underwent lavage (n = 38) presented symptoms more frequently (38/38 [100%] vs. 24/40 [60%], P < 0.001) and had significantly lower PaO2 and DLCO with higher D(A-a)O2 at the onset of disease than those without lavage (n = 40) (P = 0.006, P < 0.001, and P = 0.036, respectively). Correspondingly, the distribution of disease severity score (DSS) differed significantly between the two groups (P = 0.001). Based on these, when the total patients were categorized according to DSS (low DSS [DSS 1–2] vs. high DSS [DSS 3–5]), smoking status differed significantly between the two groups with the proportion of current smokers significantly higher in the high DSS group (11/22 [50%] vs. 7/39 [17.9%], P = 0.008). Furthermore, current smokers had meaningfully higher DSS and serum CEA levels than non-current smokers (P = 0.011 and P = 0.031), whereas no difference was found between smokers and non-smokers. Regarding type of exposed dust, farming dust was significantly associated with more severe form of PAP (P = 0.004).ConclusionA considerable proportion of PAP patients had a history of cigarette smoking and/or dust exposure, suggestive of their possible roles in the development of PAP. Active cigarette smoking at the onset of PAP is associated with the severity of PAP.
Highlights
This study aimed to investigate clinical characteristics of Korean Pulmonary alveolar proteinosis (PAP) patients and to examine the potential risk factors of PAP
Granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) is required for the terminal differentiation of alveolar macrophages (AMs) which play a key role in the clearance of normal surfactant proteins and phospholipids
Thirty-two (41%) patients exhibited diffuse bilateral lung involvements and 32 (64%) of the evaluable 50 patients typical crazy paving appearance in their radiologic findings. 35 (45%) patients were diagnosed through surgical lung biopsy while 43 (55%) patients through transbronchial biopsy (TBB) with bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) alone (Table 2)
Summary
Granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) deficiencies or defects in GM-CSF receptors are known to be related to the pathogenesis. GM-CSF is required for the terminal differentiation of alveolar macrophages (AMs) which play a key role in the clearance of normal surfactant proteins and phospholipids. Three different forms of PAP have been identified: idiopathic (primary or autoimmune), secondary, and hereditary [3,4,5,6]. More than 90% of PAP patients have idiopathic PAP (iPAP), a primary acquired disorder without familial predisposition in which GM-CSF neutralizing auto-antibodies are present [4, 7]. Hereditary PAP results from homozygous mutations of the genes encoding surfactant proteins and the ABCA3 transporter or from defects of the GM-CSF receptor [9]
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