May 14, 2014

Significance of fractional exhaled nitric oxide in chronic eosinophilic pneumonia: a retrospective cohort study

Research article


Open AccessJi Young ParkTaehoon LeeHongyeul LeeYeon Joo LeeJong Sun ParkYoung-Jae Cho,Ho Il YoonJae Ho Lee and Choon-Taek Lee
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BMC Pulmonary Medicine 2014, 14:81  doi:10.1186/1471-2466-14-81
Published: 12 May 2014

Abstract (provisional)

Background

Chronic eosinophilic pneumonia (CEP) is characterized by chronic eosinophilic infiltration of the lung. It is dramatically responsive to corticosteroid treatment, but symptoms and radiopacities recur frequently after tapering or discontinuing the medication. Fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO) is a well-known noninvasive marker of eosinophilic airway inflammation. The aim of this retrospective cohort study was to investigate the relationships of FeNO with peripheral eosinophilia and the clinical state of CEP and its validity for predicting exacerbation of CEP.

Methods

Standard clinical and laboratory parameters, peripheral eosinophil percentage and count, and FeNO level were measured in 18 patients with CEP at several assessment points over 1 year.

Results

FeNO level was positively correlated with peripheral eosinophil count (r = 0.341, P = 0.005) and percentage (r = 0.362, P = 0.003). The median (IQR) FeNO levels were 79 (41-88) and 35 (26-49) ppb in uncontrolled (13/74 measurements) and controlled (61/74 measurements) CEP, respectively (P = 0.010). The FeNO level of 66.0 ppb showed the largest area under the curve (0.835) for predicting exacerbation of CEP (sensitivity = 0.80, specificity = 0.84).

Conclusion

FeNO may be useful for monitoring eosinophilic parenchymal inflammation and determining the appropriate corticosteroid dose in CEP.

The complete article is available as a provisional PDF. The fully formatted PDF and HTML versions are in production.

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