Effect of smoking on KL-6 characteristics in middle-aged and elderly patients with interstitial lung disease

Abstract

Abstract:

Objective To evaluate the differences in serum krebs von den lungen-6（KL-6） levels in middle-aged and elderly patients with interstitial lung disease（ILD） according to different age groups and smoking statuses，and to explore its application value in clinic. Methods A total of 132 ILD patients aged ≥45 years treated at a hospital in Tianjin from January to June 2024 were enrolled. The patients were divided into the middle-aged group（n=36），pre-elderly group（n=63），elderly group（n=33），as well as smoking/non-smoking groups. Clinical data and serum KL-6 levels were collected for statistical analysis. Results The Lg（KL-6） levels in the middle-aged group，pre-elderly group and elderly group were 2.82±0.41，2.98±0.28 and 3.07±0.30，respectively. There was a statistically significant difference in Lg（KL-6） levels among the three age groups（P<0.05）. Further pairwise comparisons showed that the Lg（KL-6） levels in the elderly group were significantly higher than those in the middle-aged group，while no statistically significant difference was observed between the elderly group and the pre-elderly group. The Lg（KL-6） level in the smoking group was significantly higher than that in the non-smoking group（P<0.05）.Multivariate linear regression analysis showed that smoking history（B=0.208，β=0.294，P<0.01） and age（B=0.012，β=0.377，P<0.01） were significantly positively correlated with Lg（KL-6）. Conclusion Serum KL-6 levels in middle-aged and elderly ILD patients are affected by age and smoking status，with higher levels observed in elderly patients and those with a smoking history. This suggests that KL-6 has potential clinical value in reflecting the severity of the disease.

Key words: Interstitial lung disease, Krebs von den lungen-6, Smoking, Age, Biomarker

CLC Number:

R181.3+7

ZHENG Duo, CHEN Hongyu, LI Xijing, SHI Mengrou, XU Junhua, ZHU Liqin. Effect of smoking on KL-6 characteristics in middle-aged and elderly patients with interstitial lung disease. [J]OCCUPATION AND HEALTH, 2026, 42(16): 2210-2213.

Figures/Tables 7

References 26

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组别	例数	性别[例（%）]		吸烟史[例（%）]		BMI [（$\bar{x}±s$）kg/m²]
组别	例数	男	女	有	无	BMI [（$\bar{x}±s$）kg/m²]
中年	36	22（61.11）	14（38.89）	12（33.33）	24（66.67）	24.09±4.37
准老年	63	33（52.38）	30（47.62）	24（38.10）	39（61.90）	24.90±4.26
老年	33	18（54.55）	15（45.45）	9（27.27）	24（72.73）	24.49±4.72
χ²/F值		0.716^a		1.142^a		0.397^b
P值		0.699		0.565		0.673

组别	例数	性别[例（%）]		吸烟史[例（%）]		BMI [（$\bar{x}±s$）kg/m²]
组别	例数	男	女	有	无	BMI [（$\bar{x}±s$）kg/m²]
中年	36	22（61.11）	14（38.89）	12（33.33）	24（66.67）	24.09±4.37
准老年	63	33（52.38）	30（47.62）	24（38.10）	39（61.90）	24.90±4.26
老年	33	18（54.55）	15（45.45）	9（27.27）	24（72.73）	24.49±4.72
χ²/F值		0.716^a		1.142^a		0.397^b
P值		0.699		0.565		0.673

组别	患者例数	Lg（KL-6）
吸烟组	45	3.05±0.30
非吸烟组	87	2.92±0.35

组别	患者例数	Lg（KL-6）
吸烟组	45	3.05±0.30
非吸烟组	87	2.92±0.35

组别	患者例数	Lg（KL-6）
中年
非吸烟	24	2.72±0.39
吸烟	12	3.04±0.37
t值		2.376
P值		0.023
准老年
非吸烟	39	2.97±0.29
吸烟	24	3.02±0.28
t值		0.694
P值		0.491
老年
非吸烟	24	3.05±0.32
吸烟	9	3.13±0.25
t值		0.681
P值		0.501