Abstract
OBJECTIVE: Serum tumor markers have been discovered to be elevated in individuals with diabetes mellitus (DM); however, their significance in diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) and hyperosmolar hyperglycemia (HHS) is unknown. We evaluated these indicators in the patients with DKA and HHS. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We retrospectively collected the laboratory data of 565 diabetic patients from Shanghai Pudong Hospital between Jan, 2019 and May, 2023, including 300 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), 206 with DKA, and 59 with HHS. Serum tumor biomarkers and further clinical laboratory tests were compared among the three groups. Patients with conspicuous tumor evidence were excluded from the study. RESULTS: We found significantly higher levels of carbohydrate antigen 199 (CA199) in DKA (p<0.01), carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), complex prostate specific antigen (CPSA) (p<0.01), prostate specific antigen (PSA) (p<0.05) in HHS, as well as the plasma lipid profile, iron, and electrolytes, in addition to decreased thyroid function, hepatic and renal function, and cardiac function (p<0.05). A Spearman correlational study revealed that osmolar levels were significantly positively correlated with myoglobin (MYO) and cardiac troponin I (cTNI), whereas serum iron concentration (r=0.520) was positively correlated with CEA levels in HHS. pH was negatively correlated with CA199 (r=-0.195), while HbA1c (r=0.22), globin (r=0.341), and total cholesterol (TC) (r=0.191) were positively correlated with elevated CA199 levels. Moreover, the multilinear regression investigation identified osmolarity as a significant determinant for CEA, as well as other parameters, and all proved to be proper predictors for CEA in HHS via ROC curve establishment. CONCLUSION: Elevated CA199 levels in DKA were associated with acidosis, whereas HHS with elevated CEA levels may be related to iron homeostasis and could be predicted via the osmolar degree and other predictors.