Abstract:
Objective To investigate the expression levels of heat shock protein 70 (HSP70), osteopontin (OPN) and matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) in patients with valvular heart disease and their correlations with cardiac function.
Methods A total of 168 patients with valvular heart disease were selected as study group, while 100 healthy individuals who underwent physical examination during the same period served as healthy control group. Serum levels of HSP70, OPN and MMP-9 were measured and compared between the two groups. The 168 patients were further divided into grade Ⅱ group (n=68), grade Ⅲ group (n=57) and grade Ⅳ group (n=43) based on the classification of cardiac function in patients with valvular heart disease. Serum levels of HSP70, OPN and MMP-9 were compared among different cardiac function grades. The correlations of serum levels of HSP70, OPN and MMP-9 with left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) were analyzed. Factors influencing cardiac function grading in patients with valvular heart disease were screened. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was used to evaluate the diagnostic efficacy of serum HSP70, OPN and MMP-9 for cardiac function grading in patients with valvular heart disease.
Results Serum levels of HSP70, OPN and MMP-9 in the study group were significantly higher than those in the healthy control group (P < 0.05). Patients with multiple valve lesions had significantly higher serum levels of HSP70, OPN and MMP-9 compared to those with single valve lesions (P < 0.05). Serum levels of HSP70, OPN and MMP-9 in grade Ⅲ group and grade Ⅳ group were significantly higher than those in the grade Ⅱ group (P < 0.05); serum levels of HSP70, OPN and MMP-9 in the grade Ⅳ group were significantly higher than those in the grade Ⅲ group (P < 0.05). Age, co-morbid diabetes, disease classification, LVEF, HSP70, OPN and MMP-9 were identified as factors influencing cardiac function grading in patients with valvular heart disease (P < 0.05). Serum levels of HSP70, OPN and MMP-9 showed significant negative correlations with LVEF in patients with valvular heart disease (r=-0.611, -0.584, -0.624, P < 0.001). Combined diagnosis using serum HSP70, OPN and MMP-9 demonstrated superior diagnostic performance for cardiac function grading in patients with valvular heart disease compared to individual markers (P < 0.05).
Conclusion Serum levels of HSP70, OPN and MMP-9 are elevated in patients with valvular heart disease and increase with the progression of cardiac function grading.