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Published on: August 7, 2017
Elevated serum endocan levels and impaired respiratory functions in childhood asthma: a comparative study
Simge Atar Bese1, Gülten Tuncerler2, Cihangir Sahin2
1Department of Pediatric Allergy and Immunology, Afyonkarahisar Health Sciences University, Afyonkarahisar, Turkiye; simge.bese@afsu.edu.tr.
Background:
Asthma exacerbations (AE) impose a significant burden on children and the healthcare systems, highlighting the need for objective biomarkers and functional assessment tools.
Objective:
This study aimed to evaluate serum endocan levels and respiratory function parameters during AE and the post-recovery (PR) period, and to compare the results with healthy controls.
Materials And Methods:
In this prospective longitudinal observational study, children aged 6-18 years were evaluated during AE (n = 66), 1 month after recovery (PR group, n = 54), and as age- and gender-matched healthy controls (HC, n = 50). All participants underwent spirometry, impulse oscillometry (IOS), and serum endocan measurement.
Results:
Serum endocan levels were significantly higher in the AE group than in the PR and HC groups [267.33 (186.68-370.20) vs. 133.07 (38.26-226.78) and 118.11 (42.93-180.20) pg/mL, respectively; P < 0.001]. Spirometric indices, including zFEV1, zFVC, zFEV1/FVC, and zFEF25-75, were significantly lower in the AE group than in both comparison groups (all P < 0.05). Compared to healthy controls, children in the AE group exhibited higher R5-20, Fres, and AX values and lower zX20 values (all P ≤ 0.002). R5-20 remained significantly higher during AE than in the PR period (P = 0.038), while spirometric indices showed significant improvement after recovery (all P < 0.05). Notably, despite normalization of spirometric parameters and serum endocan levels, the PR group continued to exhibit higher R5-20 and AX values and lower zX20 values than healthy controls (all P < 0.05), suggesting persistent small-airway dysfunctioning. Serum endocan levels showed weak-to-moderate negative correlations with zFEF25-75, zFEV1, and zFEV1/FVC (Spearman's rho = -0.306, -0.291, and -0.223, respectively; all P ≤ 0.013).
Conclusion:
These findings suggest that serum endocan is associated with airway dysfunctioning and may reflect disease activity during pediatric AE, while IOS may provide additional information regarding persistent small-airway involvement after recovery.
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