Abstract:

Objective · To investigate the efficacy of rosuvastatin calcium for different high-resolution CT (HRCT) phenotypes of COPD. Methods · Fifty COPD patients were randomly selected and stratified into 3 types, i.e. A, E, M according to emphysema and bronchial wall thickening using HRCT. Based on conventional treatment, patients received 5 mg/d of rosuvastatin calcium for 2 years. Chest HRCT and type stratification were performed prior to treatment. Plasma IL-6 and IL-8 levels and lung function were measured before and after treatment. Results · There were 10 cases of A type, 17 cases of E type, and 23 cases of M type. Differences in IL-8, IL-6, FVC, and FEV1 before and after treatment between 3 types of patients were statistically significant (P < 0.05). Univariate variance analysis showed that differences in the decrease of IL-6 and IL-8 were statistically significant (P = 0.035, P = 0.006), which in A type patients decreased most. The differences in the decrease of FVC and FEV1 were not statistically significant (P=0.154, P = 0.453). Conclusion · Rosuvastatin calcium had efficacy for systemic inflammatory response in COPD patients with different HRCT phenotypes, but was unable to improve pulmonary function. The efficacy for different phenotypes varied.

Key words: chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, statins, X-ray computer tomography, interleukin-6, interleukin-8, pulmonary function