Characteristics of intestinal microflora in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and its correlation with inflammatory indexes and pulmonary function

  Objective  To explore the characteristics of intestinal microflora in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and its correlation with inflammatory indexes and pulmonary function.

  Methods  A total of 104 patients with COPD were selected as observation group, and 80 healthy people were selected as control group. The intestinal microflora was compared between two groups. The serum levels of high sensitive C reactive protein (hs-CRP), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) andinterleukin-6 (IL-6) were compared between two groups. The forced expiratory volume in the first second as a percentage of the expected value (FEV₁%) and the ratio of forced expiratory volume in the first second to forced vital capacity (FEV₁/FVC) were compared between two groups. Correlation between the characteristics of intestinal microflora and inflammatory indexes as well as pulmonary function were analyzed.

  Results  Compared with the control group, there was no significant change in the type of aerobic bacteria in the observation group, and the number of clostridium in the anaerobic bacteria was significantly higher than that in the control group (P < 0.05). The number of fungi in the observation group was more than that in the control group. The numbers of bifidobacteria and lactobacilli (feces) in the observation group were significantly lower than those in the control group (P < 0.05). The levels of serum hs-CRP, TNF-α and IL-6 in the observation group were significantly higher than those in the control group (P < 0.05). FEV₁/FVC and FEV₁% in the observation group were significantly lower than those in the control group (P < 0.05). Pearson correlation analysis showed that there were significant negative correlations between bifidobacteria and FEV₁/FVC, FEV₁%, hs-CRP, TNF-α, IL-6 (r=-0.524、-0.498、-0.477、-0.512、-0.508, P < 0.05), and lactobacilli was also negatively correlated with FEV₁/FVC, FEV₁%, hs-CRP, TNF-α, IL-6 (r=-0.576、-0.466、-0.442、-0.523、-0.439, P < 0.05).

  Conclusion  There is a significant negative correlation between intestinal microflora and inflammatory indexes and pulmonary function in COPD patients.