Soluble cytokine receptor levels in obstructive sleep apnea patients treated with continuous positive airway pressure therapy

AIMS Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) is an established therapy for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), but how CPAP compliance changes inflammation/cytokine activation remains unclear.

MATERIALS AND METHODS Plasma from patients with OSA (n = 50) and control subjects (n = 6) were subjected to soluble cytokine receptor profiles - an index of cytokine activation.

RESULTS With OSA, plasma levels of sCD30, sEGFR, sIL1RII, and sVEGFR2 increased by over 2-fold (p < 0.05). In CPAP-compliant patients (n = 22), Plasma levels of sCD30, sEGFR, sIL1RI, sIL1RII, sIL2Ra, sVEGFR1, and sVEGFR2 decreased in CPAP compliant patients (n = 22) after 90 d of CPAP, whereas in CPAP non-compliant patients (n = 28), these soluble cytokine profiles remained unchanged.

CONCLUSIONS These results identified that a specific set of soluble cytokine receptors, including sCD30, sEGFR, sIL1RII, and sVEGFR2, may serve as indices of cytokine activation in patients with OSA and also identify therapeutic response such as CPAP.