Meta-analysis of routine blood tests as predictors of mortality in COPD

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to examine whether routine blood tests can be useful in predicting mortality in COPD patients. METHODS: Eligible studies were found through a search conducted in the PubMed and Embase databases, the Cochrane Library, and the Web of Knowledge. Twelve studies were included for the meta-analysis of five biochemical markers. Pooled odds ratios (ORs), matching 95% confidence intervals (CIs), and p-values for each of the biochemical markers were calculated using the random effect model. RESULTS: The following four examined biochemical markers were shown to be associated with mortality in patients suffering from COPD: anemia (OR=2.62, 95% CI: 1.60; 4.29, p=0.01), hypoalbuminemia (OR=2.90, 95% CI: 1.56; 5.40, p=0.0008), elevated NT-proBNP (OR=7.54, 95% CI: 4.04; 14.10, p<0.00001), and elevated cardiac troponin T (OR=3.10, 95% CI: 1.11; 8.25, p=0.03). hs-CRP was not found to be associated with increased mortality. CONCLUSION: In this study, we found that anemia, hypoalbuminemia, elevated NT-proBNP, and elevated cardiac troponin T were associated with increased mortality in patients suffering from COPD.