Clinical significance of serum thrombomodulin level in rheumatoid arthritis patients

ABSTRACT

To determine the soluble thrombomodulin [TM] level in sera of rheumatoid arthritis [RA] patients and to evaluate its relationship to disease activity in those patients. Twenty rheumatoid arthritis patients were included in this study. They were 18 females and 2 males. Their age ranged from 25 to 62 years. The Disease Activity Score [DAS] was used for the assessment of disease activity in the patients. The DAS was divided into 3 categories disease activity], > 2.4 and disease activity], and >3.7 [high disease activity]. Ten age and sex-matched healthy subjects were included as a control group. The soluble thrombomodulin level was measured with a solid phase sandwish-Enzyme-Linked-Immuno-Sorbent Assay [ELISA] in the sera of the twenty RA patients and ten controls. The relationship between serum TM levels and disease activity in the patients was assessed. The frequency of patients with high serum TM levels [> 5.33 ng/ml] was 7/20 [35%]. Serum TM levels in the patients were significantly higher than those in the control group [p < 0.05] and there was a significant positive correlation between serum TM levels and the DAS [p < 0.05]. Comparison between patients with different categories of the DAS and controls regarding serum TM level showed that patients with high disease activity [DAS > 3.7] had a highly significant higher serum TM levels than the control group [p < 0.001]. Patients with moderate disease activity [DAS > 2.4 and serum TM levels than the control group [p < 0.05] while serum TM levels in patients with low disease activity [DAS control group [p > 0.05]. Serum TM levels were elevated in RA patients and correlated with the disease activity score. These results may indicate that serum TM measurement may be valuable in the evaluation of the RA disease activity