C-Reactive Protein in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, its Correlation with Lung Function and the Role of Statin in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease

Background: The link between increased C-reactive protein (CRP) and the prediction of cardiovascular risk has suggested that there might be an association between chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and the increased incidence of cardiovascular disease (CVD) among other comorbidities. Aim: The present study was done to study the relationship between the biomarker of systemic inflammation viz. CRP and disease severity, functional status and outcome in COPD patients over a period of 120 days after an acute exacerbation. Materials and Methods: An observational cross-sectional study was done on 179 patients with COPD presenting in acute exacerbation to Department of Medicine in Nehru Chikitsalay of B. R. D Medical College, Gorakhpur from January 2014 to June 2014. Forced expiratory volume, BODE index and COPD assessment test were studied. All patients underwent a detail history and clinical examination at presentation and on follow-up visits on days 15, 30, and 120. Results: In present study out of 179 patients, 105 (58.65%) were male, and 74 (41.34%) were female. Most of the patients were in the age group of 50-70 years (60.88%). The CRP was raised (>= 3 mg/l) in 136 (75.97%) patients out of that 82 (79.61%) attended day 120 follow-up and the other, 43 (24.02%) patients did not have a raised CRP at the initial visit. Out of 27 patients who expired, 26 (96.29%) had raised CRP (>= 3 mg/l) at initial presentation. A total 28 patients were lost during follow-up. Conclusion: We observed that not all COPD patients had a raised CRP but in those who had a raised CRP, its levels correlated with lung function and functional status of the individual and CRP trends could be a predictor of death. In our study, we found a definite correlation between CRP and lung function. COPD is the "cause or effect of systemic inflammation still needs to be established.