LATE PULMONARY SEQUELA FOLLOWING BURNS - PERSISTENCE OF HYPERPROCALCITONEMIA USING A 1-57-AMINO-ACID N-TERMINAL FLANKING PEPTIDE ASSAY

Seven patients were evaluated at a mean duration of 8.4 yr after susta ining inhalational injury associated with burns. At the time of re-exa mination, the patients were asymptomatic and had normal chest X-rays, and arterial blood gases. Three of the seven patients had abnormally e levated serum calcitonin levels. The spirometry (FEV(1)) measurements showed an inverse trend to that of the serum calcitonin levels. The el evated calcitonin levels had an abnormal predominance of the procalcit onin component as assessed by several region specific antisera. The se rum calcitonin also showed a significant correlation with the hormone level which had been obtained at the time of prior discharge from the hospital (r = 0.91). Although there appears to be no or minimal chroni c pulmonary sequela to inhalational injury in burns by pulmonary testi ng, we speculate that the hyperprocalcitonemia in some of the patients may reflect a long-term hyperplastic response of the bronchio-epithel ial pulmonary neuroendocrine cells. The potential significance of this and other lung-associated endocrine markers is discussed.