Correlation between Cystatin C and Pulmonary Hypertension in Patients with Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis

Abstract

Objective: To analyze the relationship between Cystatin C and pulmonary arterial hypertension in patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. Methods: A clinical cohort of sixty-eight idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis patients and forty normal individuals was established. All the cases were obtained from department of respiratory in the fifth affiliated hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University from May 2009 to May 2017. Data including basic information, Cystatin C, echocardiography parameters of each patients were recorded. Then the serum Cystatin C between the two groups was compared. The correlation between Cystatin C and pulmonary arterial hypertension in patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis was evaluated. Results: The serum Cystatin C level in IPF patients was observed higher than that in normal cases with significant difference (P＜0.001). Patients with increased level of serum Cystatin C had statistical significant higher (P＜0.05) Cystatin C and Echocardiography parameters including RAD, RVDd, PA, velocity of TR, and pulmonary arterial. The Cystatin C serum concentrations were positively correlated with RAD, RVDD, velocity of TR, and pulmonary arterial pressure. Multiple linear regression (stepwise method) analysis showed that the serum Cystatin C was positively correlated with pulmonary arterial pressure with the maximum impact, suggesting that the concentration of serum Cystatin C was one significant factor in PH of PIF patients(P <0.001). Conclusions: The serum Cystatin C level is found to be elevated in IPF patients. The serum Cystatin C concentration in IPF patients was positively correlated with pulmonary arterial pressure. Cystatin C may play a role in patients with IPF and it bears great potential to be exploited as a PH biomarker in IPF patients.