Prognostic Assessment of the Inflammatory Process Activity in Sarcoidosis of Respiratory Organs: Potential Use of C-reactive Protein and TNF-α

Abstract

This research work is devoted to the development of new additional criteria for the activity of inflammatory process in sarcoidosis of respiratory organs. The objective is to assess the effectiveness of performed treatment of sarcoidosis of respiratory organs by using low-cost highly-sensitive inflammatory markers.Materials and methods. The study involved 68 patients with lung sarcoidosis before and after the three-month treatment. In addition to general-clinical methods of examination, patients with sarcoidosis were also determined the levels of TNF-α and СRP.Results and their discussion. Patients with active lung sarcoidosis had 17.6 times (p<0.05) increased level of CRP in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid and 9.0 times (p<0.05) increased levels in peripheral blood serum; the levels of TNF-α increased by 4.98 times (p<0.05) in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid and by 3.2 times (p<0.05) in peripheral blood serum as compared to the findings in the control group of patients. The study showed that in the group of patients, where the efficacy of the prescribed therapy was noted, the level of CRP decreased by 2.76 times (p<0.05) in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid and by 2.58 times (p<0.05) in peripheral blood serum, and the concentration of TNF-α decreased by 3.87 times (p<0.05) in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid and by 2.06 times in peripheral blood serum as compared to the initial indices.Conclusions. The decrease of TNF-α level in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid on the background of three-months treatment correlated (r=0.89; p<0.05) to the changes in peripheral blood serum; at the same time the decrease of TNF-α level in peripheral blood serum correlated (r=0.82; p<0.05) to the decrease of CRP in peripheral blood serum of patients with sarcoidosis of respiratory organs.