Pulmonary Embolism, Metalloproteinases And Neutrophil Gelatinase Associated Lipocalin. Acta Phlebol.

Aim. Pulmonary embolism (PE) is a common disease related to significant morbidity and mortality. Several prognostic models have been developed to assess the risk of complica- tions in patients with PE. Metalloproteinases (MMPs) seem to be involved in both respiratory and endothelial dysfunc- tion in PE. In this study we evaluated plasma levels of MMP- 2, MMP-9 and Neutrophil Gelatinase Associated Lipocalin (NGAL) in patients with PE. Methods. An open label, parallel groups study in three clini- cal departments was conducted between January 2010-De- cember 2012. Patients eligible for the study were of both sexes, from 20 up to 70 years, with a diagnosis of PE. ELISA testing was used to determine the concentration of MMP-2, MMP-9, NGAL in plasma of enrolled patients. Results. Seventeen patients with PE (14M, 3F) were enrolled. Patients were divided in two groups according to Pulmo- nary Embolism Severity Index (PESI): Group I (high risk); Group II (low risk); Group III (healthy volunteers, as control group). ELISA findings revealed significantly higher levels (P<0.01) of MMP-2, MMP-9 and NGAL in plasma of PE pa- tients (Group I and II) respect to control patients (Group III) and the levels of MMP-9 and NGAL were also significantly higher in patients at high risk (P<0.01) (Group I). Conclusion. This study showed a role of the dosage of plas- matic MMPs and NGAL in order to better classify the prog- nosis of patients with PE.