Diagnostic Value Of Blood-Soluble Urokinase Plasminogen Activator Receptor Levels In Brucellosis
Research Article
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17871880Keywords:
Brucellosis, Soluble Urokinase-Type Plasminogen Activator Receptor (suPAR), C-reactive Protein (CRP)Abstract
Objective: Plasma suPAR levels indicate immune activation. This research aimed to determine whether there was a difference in serum suPAR levels between patients with brucellosis and the control group and to evaluate the diagnostic value of serum suPAR levels.
Methods: A total of 46 patients with brucellosis diagnosed clinically, serologically, and bacteriologically at our institution were included in the study: 21 acute, 15 subacute, and 10 chronic. Twenty-eight of the patients were male, and 18 were female. The control group included 35 healthy individuals (26 female and 9 male) with no prior history of brucellosis.
Results: Serum suPAR levels were significantly higher in the brucellosis group than in the control group. This difference was statistically significant (p <0.001). When CRP and suPAR levels were compared, suPAR levels were significantly higher in patients with CRP values above the threshold value. This difference was statistically significant (p = 0.04). When serum suPAR levels were compared in patients with acute, subacute, and chronic brucellosis, no statistically significant difference was found, unlike between the patient and control groups (p = 0.697). Pre-treatment SUPAR levels were higher in patients under treatment and in those who completed treatment, and the difference was statistically significant (p = 0.033).
Conclusion: This research demonstrated that suPAR levels can be a diagnostic marker for brucellosis, but these values cannot be used to distinguish between acute, subacute, and chronic forms of the disease. Studies with larger patient populations are necessary to confirm the biological significance of the results.
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