Change and clinical significance of serum cortisol, BNP, and PGE-2 levels in premature infants with patent ductus arteriosus

BACKGROUND: To analyze the change and clinical significance of cortisol, B-type brain natriuretic peptide (BNP), and prostacyclin-2 (PGE-2) levels in premature infants with patent ductus arteriosus (PDA). METHODS: A total of 67 cases of premature infants admitted to our hospital from January 2018 to April 2020 were included, all of whom developed PDA (PDA group). According to the presence or absence of symptoms, they were divided into the symptomatic group (28 cases) and the asymptomatic group (39 cases). In addition, 62 premature infants without PDA who were born in our hospital during the same period were selected as the control group. The expression levels of cortisol, BNP, and PGE-2 in infants in different groups and between infants with symptoms and without symptoms were analyzed, along with the risk factors leading to PDA in preterm infants. The value of cortisol, BNP, and PGE-2 in the diagnosis of PDA in premature infants was also analyzed. RESULTS: Compared with the control group, cortisol in the PDA group was significantly decreased (P<0.05), while the levels of BNP and PGE-2 were significantly increased (P<0.05). The cortisol level in the asymptomatic group was significantly higher than that in the symptomatic group, while the levels of BNP and PGE-2 were opposite, and the differences were statistically significant (P<0.05). Logistic regression analysis showed that birth weight <1,200 g, decreased cortisol, increased BNP, and increased PGE-2 were independent risk factors leading to PDA in preterm infants, and the differences were statistically significant (P<0.05). Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve showed that the sensitivity and specificity of cortisol+BNP+PGE-2 in the diagnosis of PDA in premature infants were 75.60% and 73.10%, respectively. The area under the curve (AUC) value was 0.759 (95% CI: 0.611–0.859), which was significantly higher than the AUC values of the 3 tests alone (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The expression of cortisol decreased in premature infants with PDA, while the levels of BNP and PGE-2 significantly increased. Dynamic detection of the changes in these levels can provide an important reference for the early diagnosis of PDA and for the assessment of disease progression.