Correlation of CRP and Serum Fibrinogen Levels withDisease Severity, Clinical Factors and PulmonaryFunction Tests in COPD Patients

Background: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a progressive chronic disease and C-reactive protein (CRP)and fibrinogen are considered as main systemic inflammatory biomarkers. This study aimed to evaluate the alterations ofCRP and serum fibrinogen levels in COPD patients and their correlation with the severity of disease, arterial O2 saturationand opium or cigarette consumption.Materials and Methods: This was a descriptive case-control study conducted on 31 COPD patients and 29 healthy controlsselected by using easy sampling method in Afzalipour Hospital. Serum levels of CRP and fibrinogen were measured byELISA method and analyzed using SPSS software version 15.Results: The mean serum level of CRP in the understudy patients (13.15±13.72 mg/L) was significantly higher than that ofthe controls (3.53±1.12 mg/L)(P=0.000). However, no significant difference was found in the mean serum level of fibrinogenbetween cases (3.81±0.93 mg/dl) and controls (3.72±0.9 mg/dl)(p=0.82). Also, no significant correlation was detectedbetween the serum level of CRP or fibrinogen and severity of the disease (P=0.92 and P=0.58, respectively). A statisticallysignificant relationship was found between the serum levels of CRP and fibrinogen and arterial O2 saturation (P=0.02). Therewas no significant difference in the serum levels of CRP and fibrinogen between the opium users (p=0.19) and other patients(p=0.15).Conclusion: According to our study results, COPD, per se, can increase the inflammatory biomarkers including CRP. Raisedserum level of CRP is indicative of systemic inflammation which results in extra-pulmonary manifestations like cardiovasculardiseases, cerebrovascular accidents, osteoporosis, and cachexia. Therefore, with routine measurement of this marker, wecan evaluate the severity of systemic inflammation in these patients and choose the best treatment accordingly.