The relationship between serum Lumican levels and myocardial fibrosis in patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy

ObjectiveHypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) is the leading cause of sudden cardiac death in young individuals. Lumican, is an indicator of fibrosis. We aimed to evaluate the relation between serum Lumican levels and presence and extent of myocardial fibrosis in HCM.MethodsThe patients diagnosed with HCM between June 2022 and March 2023 were enrolled consecutively in this prospective study. Age and gender-matched healthy individuals formed control group. Two groups were generated according to extent of late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) in HCM patients.ResultsA total of 114 patients were enrolled. Serum Lumican, NT-proBNP levels and maximum wall thickness were revealed as independent risk factors associated with LGE. A cut-off value of 9.06 for Lumican was associated with 67.8% sensitivity and 65.5% specificity in prediction of LGE.ConclusionMyocardial fibrosis is one of the important mechanisms in HCM pathophysiology. LGE on cardiac magnetic resonance imaging allows comprehensive evaluation of myocardial fibrosis, the support of diagnosis with a biomarker would be beneficial in clinical practice. Our study revealed that serum Lumican level is an independent predictor of severe LGE in HCM patients. Further studies with larger patient numbers may clarify the importance of Lumican in HCM pathophysiology.