Upper airway cough syndrome in children and two inflammatory factors: TRPV1 and TGF-β2.
OBJECTIVE
The aim of the study was to investigate upper airway cough syndrome (UACS) in children and to determine alternative methods to explore the relationships among TRPV1, TGF-β2, and UACS.


METHODS
In 2012, 104 children with adenoid hypertrophy aged 2-13 years who were admitted to the otolaryngology department, Capital Institute of Pediatrics-affiliated children's hospital, were included in this study. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and immunohistochemical (IHC) studies for TRPV1 and TGF-β2 were performed to understand the relationship between the two inflammatory factors, and the correlations among the indices and UACS. The research was divided into three stages. In stage 1, 72 children (24 UACS and 48 controls) were enrolled in the study, and ELISAs for TRPV1 and TGF-β2 were performed. In stage 2, 32 children (16 UACS and 16 controls) were enrolled in the study and both ELISA and IHC for TRPV1 and TGF-β2 were performed. In stage 3, 41 children were enrolled in this research who had thick mucus secretions in the posterior nasal apertures in stage 1 and 2 (23 cases with chief complaint (or history) of chronic cough and 18 cases without). The difference between the TRPV1 and TGF-β2 serum values and the clinical factors was determined.


RESULTS
The levels of TRPV1 and TGF-β2 were significantly increased in the UACS cases. OSAHS and thick mucus secretions correlated with a diagnosis of UACS. A history of asthma and thick mucus secretions correlated with elevation of the two inflammatory factors. There was no statistical correlation between ELISA and IHC testing. Among the children with thick mucus secretions, some had a higher possibility of chronic coughing including those who had higher levels of the two indices, larger tonsils and a history of chronic tonsillitis.


CONCLUSIONS
The detections of TRPV1 and TGF-β2 from serum and adenoid body specimens are valuable for UACS auxiliary diagnosis. Tonsil hypertrophy and chronic tonsillitis history are independent risk factors of UACS.
Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Capital Institute of Pediatrics affiliated children's hospital, Beijing, China.
Ying-Xia
YX
Lu
Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Capital Institute of Pediatrics affiliated children's hospital, Beijing, China. Electronic address: gql71@163.com.
Qing-Long
QL
Gu
Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Capital Institute of Pediatrics affiliated children's hospital, Beijing, China.
Jun
J
Du
Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Capital Institute of Pediatrics affiliated children's hospital, Beijing, China.
Jing
J
Zhao
Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Capital Institute of Pediatrics affiliated children's hospital, Beijing, China.
Chen
C
Liu
Department of laboratory center of clinical, Capital Institute of Pediatrics affiliated children's hospital, Beijing, China.
Xiao-Lan
XL
Huang
Department of Pathology, Capital Institute of Pediatrics affiliated children's hospital, Beijing, China.
Ji-Zhen
JZ
Zou
D000293:Adolescent; D017677:Age Distribution; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000032:analysis; D016535:Bronchial Hyperreactivity / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D002908:Chronic Disease; D003371:Cough / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D015994:Incidence; D008297:Male; D012016:Reference Values; D018570:Risk Assessment; D017678:Sex Distribution; D013577:Syndrome; D050916:TRPV Cation Channels / Q000097:blood* / Q000378:metabolism; D053781:Transforming Growth Factor beta2 / Q000097:blood* / Q000378:metabolism
D015415:Biomarkers; D050916:TRPV Cation Channels; C494482:TRPV1 protein, human; D053781:Transforming Growth Factor beta2
Airway sensitivity; Chronic inflammation; Coughing; Respiratory symptoms; TGF-β2; Transient receptor potential (TRP) ion channels