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Serum periostin levels much higher among patients with AERD

Asthmatic adults with aspirin-exacerbated respiratory disease had significantly elevated serum periostin levels, according to recent study results.

Researchers used human periostin enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay in serum samples of 277 adults with asthma (mean age, 46.4 years; 188 women) to measure serum periostin levels. Eighty-seven healthy volunteers (mean age, 27.3 years; 56.3% men) without any allergic disease history were enrolled as controls. The researchers compared serum periostin levels between patients with aspirin-exacerbated respiratory disease (AERD) and aspirant tolerant asthma (ATA) with other asthma phenotypes, including severe or nonsevere asthma and eosinophilic or noneosinophilic asthma. An analysis of serum periostin levels with clinical parameters was conducted.

Patients with asthma had significantly higher periostin levels compared with the healthy controls (P<.001). Significantly higher serum periostin levels were shown in patients with AERD vs. those with ATA (P=.005), patients with severe asthma vs. those with nonsevere asthma (P=.02) and patients with eosinophilic asthma vs. those with noneosinophilic asthma (P=.001).

Serum periostin levels were a significant predictor of AERD phenotype (P=.006), along with severe asthma phenotype (P=.04), according to multivariate regression analysis.

“In addition, serum periostin levels correlated with blood eosinophil counts (Spearman [rank correlation]=0.244, P<.001) and sputum eosinophil counts (Spearman [rank correlation]=0.261, P<.001),” the researchers reported.

Comorbid AERD patients with more severe chronic rhinosinusitis (Lund-Mackay stages 3 and 4) experienced higher serum periostin levels compared with patients with less chronic rhinosinusitis (Lund-Mackay stages 1 and 2; P=.03).

“We found that serum periostin is significantly elevated in AERD patients, especially those with more severe [chronic rhinosinusitis], suggesting that serum periostin can be a potential biomarker for AERD beyond T_H2-mediated or eosinophilic airway inflammations,” the researchers concluded.

Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.