Relationship Between Pulmonary Artery Pressure and Inflammation Parameters

TL;DR

This study found that higher pulmonary artery pressure in heart failure patients is linked to increased inflammation, as measured by the C-reactive protein to albumin ratio.

Contribution

The study identifies a novel correlation between pulmonary artery pressure and the CAR ratio in patients with pulmonary hypertension.

Findings

PHT patients had significantly higher CAR values compared to non-PHT patients.

A strong positive correlation was found between CAR and pulmonary artery pressure.

Eosinophil counts were higher in non-PHT patients.

Abstract

Background

Inflammation can play a role in the development and progression of pulmonary hypertension (PHT). In this study, inflammatory parameters were compared in congestive heart failure (CHF) patients with and without PHT. The relationship between pulmonary artery pressure (PAP) and inflammatory parameters was investigated.

Materials and methods

Out of 80 CHF patients, 40 had PHT. The patients' age, gender, smoking status, comorbidities such as diabetes mellitus (DM) and hypertension (HT), and mortality rates were recorded. Inflammatory parameters were recorded.

Results

The mean age of the PHT group was 64.38 ± 9.17 and the mean age of the non-PHT group was 64.70 ± 8.99. There were 23 men and 17 women in the PHT group, and there were 21 men and 19 women in the non-PHT group. There was no significant difference between the two groups in terms of mean age and gender distribution (p = 0.874 and p = 0.653). Accordingly, the C-reactive protein to albumin ratio (CAR) value was statistically significantly higher in PHT patients (p = 0.023). The eosinophil count was found to be significantly higher in non-PHT patients (p = 0.015). Accordingly, a significant correlation was detected between CAR and PAP (r = 0.392 and p < 0.001).

Conclusion

In this study, the positive correlation between PAP and CAR and the significantly higher CAR value in PHT patients indicate the presence of inflammation in PHT patients. Studies on the relationship between inflammation and mortality in PHT patients may contribute more to the literature in the future.