Receptor of advanced glycation end products in childhood asthma exacerbation

BackgroundReceptor of advanced glycation end products (RAGE) is a new marker of inflammation in different inflammatory disorders. Bronchial asthma as an inflammatory disease is associated with increased levels of many markers of inflammation which are used to evaluate the severity of childhood asthma, and may be the targets of new therapeutic options aiming at improving the management of such diseases.AimTo evaluate serum levels of RAGE in acute asthma exacerbation in children, and also to correlate their levels with peak expiratory flow rate (PEFR) and number of exacerbations during the last 6 months.MethodsOne hundred asthmatic children, aged 6–12 years, with acute exacerbation were evaluated during their visit to ER unit for serum RAGE (measured by ELISA) and PEFR before receiving any treatment. They were 53 males and 47 females. Fifty subjects were taken as controls for serum RAGE.ResultsSerum RAGE was significantly higher in asthmatic children compared to control group. It was higher in asthmatic children who had poor response to initial therapy at emergency room. Serum RAGE showed significant negative correlation with PEFR and significant positive correlation with a number of asthma exacerbations during the last 6 months.ConclusionSerum RAGE is elevated during acute asthma exacerbation in children. High levels above 1733.5 pg/mL can expect poor response to initial therapy at emergency room and need for hospitalization with sensitivity and specificity and a specificity of 90.5% and 83.35% respectively.