J Thorac Dis. 2026 May 31;18(5):509. doi: 10.21037/jtd-2026-0661. Epub 2026 Apr 24.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: The association of triglyceride-glucose (TyG) index and triglyceride-glucose body mass (TyG-BMI) index with the risk and prognosis among patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) remains unclear. This study aimed to separately evaluate the associations of the TyG index and TyG-BMI with the risk of developing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and clinical outcomes among patients with established COPD.
METHODS: PubMed, Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) and Web of Science databases were searched up to February 21, 2026. Pooled odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated separately for studies evaluating COPD risk in non-COPD populations and for studies evaluating mortality and other adverse clinical outcomes among patients with established COPD. Subgroup analysis based on the comorbidity of diabetes mellitus (DM) was further performed.
RESULTS: Eleven studies with 488,622 participants were included. Among studies evaluating COPD risk, higher TyG index (OR =1.30, P=0.008) and TyG-BMI index (OR =1.004, P=0.002) was significantly related to increased risk of COPD. Among studies including patients with established COPD, elevated TyG index was association with higher incidence of all-cause mortality (OR =1.20, P<0.001), intensive care unit (ICU) mortality (OR =1.84, P<0.001), in-hospital mortality (OR =1.48, P=0.031), respiratory failure (OR =2.03, P<0.001), acute kidney injury (AKI) (OR =1.45, P=0.003), sepsis (OR =1.51, P=0.001), chronic pulmonary heart disease (CPHD) (OR =2.84, P<0.001), severe ventilation disorder (SVD) (OR =2.82, P=0.001) and heart failure (HF) (OR =12.393, P<0.001). Subgroup analysis based on the comorbidity of DM manifested consistent results. TyG-BMI index was also associated with cardiovascular disease (CVD)-related mortality (OR =1.002, P<0.05).
CONCLUSIONS: Available evidence suggests that higher TyG and TyG-BMI indices are associated with an increased risk of COPD. In patients with established COPD, elevated TyG-related indices were also associated with several adverse clinical outcomes.
PMID:42306697 | PMC:PMC13266842 | DOI:10.21037/jtd-2026-0661