Etiología y biomarcadores de inflamación sistémica en las exacerbaciones leves a moderadas de la enfermedad pulmonar obstructiva crónica / Etiology and biomarkers of systemic inflammation in mild to moderate COPD exacerbations

Background: The etiology of acute exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is heterogeneous and still under discussion. Inflammation increases during exacerbation of COPD. The identification of inflammatory changes will increase our knowledge and potentially guide therapy. Aim: To identify which inflammatory parameters increase during COPD exacerbations compared to stable disease, and to compare bacterial and viral exacerbations. Material and Methods: In 85 COPD patients (45 males, mean age 68 ± 8 years, FEV1 46 ± 17% of predicted) sputum, nasopharyngeal swabs and blood samples were collected to identify the causative organism, during a mild to moderate exacerbation. Serum ultrasensitive C reactive protein (CRP), fibrinogen and interleukin 6 (IL 6), neutrophil and leukocyte counts were measured in stable conditions, during a COPD exacerbation, 15 and 30 days post exacerbation. Results: A total of 120 mild to moderate COPD exacerbations were included. In 74 (61.7%), a microbial etiology could be identified, most commonly Mycoplasma pneumoniae (15.8%), Rhinovirus (15%), Haemophilus influenzae (14.2%), Chlamydia pneumoniae (11.7%), Streptococcus pneumoniae (5.8%) and Gram negative bacilli (5.8%). Serum CRP, fibrinogen and IL 6, and neutrophil and leukocyte counts significantly increased during exacerbation and recovered at 30 days post exacerbation. Compared to viral exacerbations, bacterial aggravations were associated with a systemic inflammation of higher magnitude. Conclusions: Biomarkers of systemic inflammation increase during mild to moderate COPD exacerbations. The increase in systemic inflammation seems to be limited to exacerbations caused by bacterial infections.

Exacerbaciones en pacientes ex-fumadores con enfermedad pulmonar obstructiva crónica: efectos clínicos y funcionales a corto plazo / Short term effects of acute exacerbations in COPD patients

Acute exacerbations of COPD (AECOPD) are associated with decline of FEV1 and health related quality of life. Our aim was to evaluate the short-term effects of AECOPD on several functional and clinical indices in a cohort of 60 ex-smokers patients with COPD. During a 6-month follow up, 40 patients experienced one exacerbation (Group 1), mainly moderate, evaluated 30 days after by measuring BMI, dyspnea, FVC, FEV1, inspiratory capacity (IC), Sp02, six-min walking distance (6MWD), BODE index and quality of life (SGRQ). Values were compared with those measured at recruitment in stable conditions and with those obtained in the 20 patients without AECOPD during a similar period (Group 2). Baseline values were similar in both groups. Group 1 showed a significant worsening in FVC, FEV1, Sp02, BMI, 6MWD, and BODE index. Improvement in SGRQ and BODE was found in group 2. Significant differences in changes between groups were found for all variables, except IC and Sp02. The most noteworthy differences were found for BODE index (p = 0.001) and SGRQ (p = 0.004). Results demonstrate that moderate AECOPD produces significant short term functional and clinical impairment in ex-smokers COPD.

Las exacerbaciones de la EPOC deterioran el FEV1y la calidad de vida. Nuestro objetivo fue evaluar el efecto a corto plazo de las exacerbaciones sobre otros índices funcionales y clínicos. Sesenta pacientes ex fumadores con EPOC fueron seguidos durante 6 meses. Cuarenta presentaron una exacerbación (Grupo 1), generalmente moderada, estudiada 30 días después. los 20 pacientes no exacerbados constituyeron el grupo control (Grupo 2). Se midió IMC, disnea, CVF, FEV1h capacidad inspiratoria (CI), SpO2, caminata en 6 min (C6M), índice BODE y calidad de vida (SGRQ). En condiciones basales no hubo diferencias entre grupos. El grupo 1 empeoró CVF, VEF1, SpO2, IMC, C6M e índice BODE, sin cambios de CI ni SGRQ. El grupo 2 no presentó deterioro, mejorando SGRQ y BODE. Al comparar ambos grupos, hubo diferencias significativas en los cambios de todas las variables, excepto Cly SpO2, siendo estas diferencias más notorias en el índice BODE (p = 0,001) y SGRQ (p = 0,004). En suma, las exacerbaciones de la EPOC producen deterioro clínico y funcional significativo en el corto plazo.