Lab Med Online.  2014 Oct;4(4):191-197. 10.3343/lmo.2014.4.4.191.

Significance of Neutrophil Gelatinase-Associated Lipocalin Level as an Acute-Phase Reactant in Patients with Systemic Inflammatory Response Syndrome

Affiliations
  • 1Department of Laboratory Medicine, College of Medicine, Inha University, Incheon, Korea. jwchoi@inha.ac.kr
  • 2Department of Emergency Medicine, College of Medicine, Inha University, Incheon, Korea.
  • 3Department of Pediatrics, College of Medicine, Inha University, Incheon, Korea.

Abstract

BACKGROUND
We investigated the significance of plasma neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (pNGAL) level as an acute-phase reactant and an index for an increase in serum creatinine (sCr) level in patients with inflammatory diseases.
METHODS
A total of 63 patients with systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) and 149 without SIRS were evaluated, and pNGAL level was determined using a fluorescence immunoassay. sCr levels were measured daily during three days, and the difference between the initial and follow-up sCr levels was defined as a delta sCr value. Serum albumin/sCr ratio (sACR) was calculated. High-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) level was determined using a latex turbidometric method.
RESULTS
The median pNGAL level in the SIRS group (154 ng/mL) was significantly higher than that in the non-SIRS (86 ng/mL) and control (62 ng/mL) groups (P<0.001, respectively). The area under the ROC curve (AUC) of pNGAL for diagnosing SIRS was 0.725 (95% CI, 0.664-0.781), which was not significantly different from that of hsCRP (0.749; 95% CI, 0.685-0.809; P=0.375). Multivariate regression analyses revealed that log-pNGAL was significantly associated with hsCRP (beta=0.546, P<0.001) and sACR (beta=0.351, P<0.001). The AUC of pNGAL for the positive delta sCr in 48-72 hr was 0.649 (95% CI, 0.542-0.746, P=0.023) in the SIRS group.
CONCLUSIONS
pNGAL is comparable to hsCRP as an inflammation-related parameter, and its measurement may provide additional information for a potential increase in sCr during 48-72 hr in patients with SIRS.

Keyword

Neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin; Systemic inflammatory response syndrome; Acute-phase reactant

MeSH Terms

Area Under Curve
C-Reactive Protein
Creatinine
Fluorescence
Follow-Up Studies
Humans
Immunoassay
Latex
Lipocalins*
Neutrophils*
Plasma
ROC Curve
Systemic Inflammatory Response Syndrome*
C-Reactive Protein
Creatinine
Latex
Lipocalins

Figure

  • Fig. 1 The prevalence of an increase in pNGAL in SIRS and non-SIRS groups. The prevalence of pNGAL above the cutoff level (150 ng/mL) was significantly higher in the SIRS group than in the non-SIRS group (P<0.001). In particular, the proportion of patients showing pNGAL> 1,000 ng/mL was 6.3% in the SIRS group, but no patient showed pNGAL> 1,000 ng/mL in the non-SIRS group. Abbreviations: pNGAL, plasma neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin; SIRS, systemic inflammatory response syndrome.

  • Fig. 2 Comparison of the ROC curve between pNGAL and hsCRP for the diagnosis of SIRS. The areas under the ROC curves (AUCs) for pNGAL and hsCRP were 0.725 (95% CI, 0.664-0.781) and 0.749 (95% CI, 0.685-0.809), respectively. No significant difference in the AUC was observed between the two parameters (P=0.375). Abbreviations: pNGAL, plasma neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin; hsCRP, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein.


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