Abstract

Relationship between duration, fatality rate and severity of disease and serum epidermal growth factor in human acute lung injury

Author(s): Afsaneh Vazin, Mojtaba Mojtahedzadeh, Atabak Najafi, Azita Khalilzadeh and Mohammad Abdollahi

Aim: The present study was undertaken to clarify whether serum concentrations of epidermal growth factor (EGF) are changed during the first week after the onset of acute lung injury (ALI) and to determine whether the change of EGF concentration was specific for ALI by including a control subject. Methods: We enrolled 30 consecutive patients with ALI, prospectively identified on admission to the intensive care unit, and ten patients in the same unit with chronic interstitial disease. The serum EGF concentration was measured on days 1 to 7 after the onset of ALI. Results: At each day tested, the mean EGF level of the patients with ALI was not significantly higher than that of the non-ALI controls and normal volunteers. In a univariate analysis, the mean EGF level in nonsurvivors was not higher at different days (p > 0.05). The overall fatality was not associated with increased serum EGF levels. Conclusion: It is concluded that the concentration of EGF in the serum of ALI patients does not change significantly.