Keywords :
Body mass index, Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, Interleukin-6
Citation Information :
Gupta S, Saini V, Jaswal S, Kaur J, Krishna S, Kaur M. Association of Interleukin-6 Levels with Body Mass Index in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Patients. Indian J Respir Care 2024; 13 (4):221-225.
Background: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is considered to be a systemic inflammatory state. There is an increase in the circulating markers of inflammation like interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumor necrosis factor-alpha, and C-reactive protein (CRP) in COPD patients, which are reported to be associated with disease severity. IL-6 levels are found to be increased in overweight/obesity as well. However, increased body mass index (BMI) has been documented to show a protective effect on COPD. The current study was planned to explore the association of IL-6 with BMI and grades of disease severity.
Materials and methods: The study design was observational and cross-sectional and included 70 diagnosed cases of COPD. The patients were divided into underweight, normal weight, and overweight/obese groups by Asian criteria based on BMI. The circulating IL-6 and CRP levels were measured. The disease severity was assessed by the Global Initiative for COPD criteria.
Results: No significant difference was found in IL-6 and CRP levels among different subgroups based on BMI (p > 0.05). However, a statistically significant difference was found in IL-6 and CRP levels among patients with mild, moderate, and severe disease (p < 0.001). A significant correlation was found between IL-6 and CRP, but no significant correlation was found between these and BMI.
Conclusion: The present study does not support the obesity paradox in COPD, as no significant association of BMI with disease severity was found, whereas IL-6 and CRP showed a significant difference among patients with different severity grades.
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