Decreased haptoglobin levels inversely correlated with pulmonary artery pressure in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension

Figures

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  Figure 1. The box-plot diagrams show the serum haptoglobin levels in each group of patients: PAH, CTEPH, and CTD-non-PAH group. The bottom and top of the box represent the first and third quartiles, and the band inside the box shows the median. Whiskers represent the minimum and maximum of all of the data. The percentages show the prevalence of serum haptoglobin levels lower than 95th percentile of healthy controls in each group. CTD-non-PAH = connective tissue diseases without pulmonary arterial hypertension, CTEPH = chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension, PAH = pulmonary arterial hypertension.

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  Figure 2. The correlation between serum haptoglobin levels and mPAP or ePASP in PAH or CTEPH group. The continuous lines show regression line. The broken horizontal lines show upper or lower limit of serum haptoglobin levels established using 95th percentile of healthy controls. The percentages show the prevalence of increased, normal, or decreased haptoglobin levels in each group. CTEPH = chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension, ePASP = pulmonary artery systolic pressure estimated by echocardiography, mPAP = mean pulmonary artery pressure, PAH = pulmonary arterial hypertension. ∗Spearman rank correlation coefficient.

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  Figure 3. Subanalysis on the correlation between serum haptoglobin levels and mPAP in CTD-PAH or IPAH (A), PAH with anticoagulation or PAH without anticoagulation (B), and CTD-PAH with immunosuppressant or CTD-PAH without immunosuppressant (C). CTD-PAH = connective tissue diseases associated pulmonary arterial hypertension, IPAH = idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension, mPAP = mean pulmonary artery pressure. ∗Spearman rank correlation coefficient.

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  Figure 4. The box-plot diagrams show the serum lactate dehydrogenase levels in pulmonary arterial hypertension patients with normal haptoglobin levels or those with decreased ones.

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  Figure 5. (A) Transition of serum haptoglobin levels in 3 patients. (B) A representative clinical course of a patient with pulmonary arterial hypertension associated with systemic sclerosis. ePASP = pulmonary artery systolic pressure estimated by echocardiography, mPAP = mean pulmonary arterial pressure.