• Eleni Gaki, Konstantina Kontogianni, Andriana I Papaioannou, Petros Bakakos, Konstantinos I Gourgoulianis, Konstantinos Kostikas, Manos Alchanatis, Spyridon Papiris, and Stelios Loukides.
• 2nd Respiratory Medicine Department, University of Athens Medical School, Attikon Hospital, Rimini 1, Athens, Greece.
• COPD. 2011 Dec 1;8(6):408-13.

BackgroundCOPD is a multicomponent disease and systemic inflammation represents one of the possible mechanisms responsible for its systemic manifestations, including skeletal muscle weakness and cachexia. Fat-free mass index (FFMI) that reflects the skeletal muscle mass, has been shown to be associated with both dyspnoea and exercise capacity. We hypothesized that the multidimensional BODE index, that reflects the multicomponent nature of COPD, might be related to biomarkers of systemic inflammation. We further evaluated associations between FFMI and systemic inflammation.MethodsBODE index and FFMI were calculated in 222 stable COPD patients and 132 smokers or ex-smokers with normal lung function. Systemic inflammation was evaluated with the measurement of leptin, adiponectin, CRP, IL-6, and TNF-α in serum samples of COPD patients.ResultsIn patients with COPD, both BODE index and FFMI presented significant positive and negative associations respectively with leptin levels (R(2) 0.61 and 0.65, respectively), whereas FFMI presented an additional negative association with the levels of TNF-α (R(2) 0.38). No significant associations were observed in smokers or ex-smokers with normal lung function.ConclusionsBoth BODE index and FFMI, are related to the circulating levels of leptin in patients with COPD, suggesting a possible role for leptin in the systemic component of COPD. The additional association of FFMI with TNF-α may further support a role of systemic inflammation in muscle wasting in COPD.

31 keywords...

hide…