H Qin1, X P Xu2, J Zou1, X J Zhao1, H W Wu3, Q F Zha1, S Chen4, Y Kang5, H D Jiang6. 1. Department of Respiratory, Ren Ji Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China. 2. Department of Clinical Laboratory, Ren Ji Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China. 3. Department of Radiology, Ren Ji Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China. 4. Department of Rheumatology, Ren Ji Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China. 5. Department of Cardiology, Ren Ji Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China. 6. Department of Respiratory, Ren Ji Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China. Electronic address: jianghd@163.com.
Abstract
AIMS: The purpose of this prospective, single-center study was to measure the value of Krebs von den Lungen-6 (KL-6), a kind of transmembrane mucoprotein, in diagnosing interstitial lung disease (ILD) and in assessing the severity of ILD. METHODS: We enrolled 184 patients and 30 healthy controls. Ninety-eight patients were diagnosed with ILD, 47 with pneumonia, 19 with non-small cell lung cancer without ILD (NSCLC/non-ILD) and 20 with other lung diseases. Serum KL-6 levels, CT scores of high-resolution computerised tomography (HRCT) and pulmonary function in ILD patients were assessed. RESULTS: The mean value of serum KL-6 in patients with ILD, pneumonia, NSCLC/non-ILD, other lung diseases and healthy controls were 1000.67±882.73U/ml, 234.11±91.02U/ml, 269.95±149.23U/ml, 234.85±83.51U/ml and 189.03±55.50U/ml, respectively. Serum KL-6 levels of patients with ILD were significantly higher than that of other groups (P<0.000). The level of serum KL-6 in patients with pneumonia, NSCLC/non-ILD and other lung diseases was also statistically higher than healthy controls (P<0.05). When the cut-off value was 312U/ml, the sensitivity and specificity of KL-6 for the diagnosis of ILD was 84.7% and 85.3% respectively (AUC: 0.936, 95% CI: 0.906-0.965). The serum KL-6 levels in patients with ILD were significantly positively correlated with the CT scores (r=0.539, P=0.000) and negatively correlated with DLCO (r=-0.513, P=0.000). CONCLUSION: Serum KL-6 might be useful in the diagnosis of ILD, especially in the hard-to-diagnose cases, with high sensitivity and specificity. Furthermore, KL-6 might be a valuable marker for evaluation of ILD severity.
AIMS: The purpose of this prospective, single-center study was to measure the value of Krebs von den Lungen-6 (KL-6), a kind of transmembrane mucoprotein, in diagnosing interstitial lung disease (ILD) and in assessing the severity of ILD. METHODS: We enrolled 184 patients and 30 healthy controls. Ninety-eight patients were diagnosed with ILD, 47 with pneumonia, 19 with non-small cell lung cancer without ILD (NSCLC/non-ILD) and 20 with other lung diseases. Serum KL-6 levels, CT scores of high-resolution computerised tomography (HRCT) and pulmonary function in ILDpatients were assessed. RESULTS: The mean value of serum KL-6 in patients with ILD, pneumonia, NSCLC/non-ILD, other lung diseases and healthy controls were 1000.67±882.73U/ml, 234.11±91.02U/ml, 269.95±149.23U/ml, 234.85±83.51U/ml and 189.03±55.50U/ml, respectively. Serum KL-6 levels of patients with ILD were significantly higher than that of other groups (P<0.000). The level of serum KL-6 in patients with pneumonia, NSCLC/non-ILD and other lung diseases was also statistically higher than healthy controls (P<0.05). When the cut-off value was 312U/ml, the sensitivity and specificity of KL-6 for the diagnosis of ILD was 84.7% and 85.3% respectively (AUC: 0.936, 95% CI: 0.906-0.965). The serum KL-6 levels in patients with ILD were significantly positively correlated with the CT scores (r=0.539, P=0.000) and negatively correlated with DLCO (r=-0.513, P=0.000). CONCLUSION: Serum KL-6 might be useful in the diagnosis of ILD, especially in the hard-to-diagnose cases, with high sensitivity and specificity. Furthermore, KL-6 might be a valuable marker for evaluation of ILD severity.