Background: To study the predictive value of B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) and soluble thrombomodulin (sTM) in the severity stratification and prognosis evaluation of sepsis.
Methods: The clinical data of 137 sepsis patients diagnosed and treated in Sichuan Provincial People's Hospital from May 2018 to November 2020 were retrospectively analyzed. Meanwhile, 121 healthy individuals were selected as the control group. Patients with sepsis were allocated into the mild group, severe group, and shock group according to the severity. According to the 28-day prognosis, the patients were allocated into the death group and survival group. The plasma BNP and serum sTM levels in different groups were compared, and their prognostic value was evaluated.
Results: Patients with sepsis had significantly higher levels of BNP and sTM than the healthy control group (P<0.05). The levels of BNP and sTM in the mild group were significantly lower than those in the severe group and shock group, and both BNP and sTM were positively correlated with Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Status (APACHE) II score (r=0.595, 0.516, P<0.05). The levels of BNP and sTM in the death group were significantly higher than those in the survival group (P<0.05). The area under curve (AUC) of BNP combined with sTM was significantly greater than that of BNP or sTM alone for the prognosis of sepsis (P<0.05). When the cut-off value of BNP was 625.68 pg/mL, the sensitivity and specificity were 77.42% and 89.42%, respectively. When the cut-off value of sTM was 10.53 ng/mL, the sensitivity and specificity were 83.87% and 94.34%, respectively.
Conclusions: Patients with sepsis have significantly higher serum BNP and sTM levels which are positively correlated with the severity of the disease. Both of the 2 indexes have good prognostic value, and the predictive value is higher when combined.
Keywords: B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP); prognosis; sepsis; severity; soluble thrombomodulin (sTM).