Heparin-binding protein in lower airway samples as a biomarker for pneumonia

Ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) is difficult to diagnose using clinical criteria and no biomarkers have yet been proved to be sufficiently accurate. The use of the neutrophil-derived Heparin-binding protein (HBP) as a biomarker for pneumonia was investigated in this exploratory case-control study in two intensive care units at a tertiary referral hospital.

Patients with clinical signs of pneumonia were recruited and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) or bronchial wash (BW) samples were collected. Mechanically ventilated and lung healthy subjects were recruited as controls. HBP was measured with enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.

BALF was collected from 14 patients with pneumonia and 14 healthy controls. Median HBP in BALF pneumonia samples was 14,690 ng/ml and controls 16.2 ng/ml (p < 0.0001). BW was collected from 10 pneumonia patients and 10 mechanically ventilated controls. Median HBP in BW pneumonia was 9002 ng/ml and controls 7.6 ng/ml (p < 0.0001).

These data indicate that HBP concentrations is significantly higher in lower airway samples from patients with pneumonia than control subjects and is a potentially useful biomarker for diagnosis of VAP.