Open Access

ARTICLE

Maternal serum proinflammatory cytokines in preterm labor with intact membranes: neonatal outcome and histological associations

Andrzej Torbé, Ryszard Czajka, Agnieszka Kordek, Rafał Rzepka, Sebastian Kwiatkowski, Jacek Rudnicki

From the Chair and Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Neonatology of Pomeranian Medical University, 70-111 Szczecin, Powstańców Wielkopolskich 72, Poland

* Corresponding Author: Andrzej Torbé,

European Cytokine Network 2007, 18(2), 102-107. https://doi.org/10.1684/ecn.2007.0092

Accepted 05 June 2007;

Abstract

Our aim was to compare maternal serum concentrations of interleukin(IL)-1α IL-1β, IL-6 and IL-8 in pregnancies complicated by preterm labor (PTL), with the levels in healthy controls at comparable gestational age, and to determine if these assays have any value in the prediction of early-onset neonatal infection or histological chorioamnionitis. The study population consisted of 65 women with new-onset PTL, and 31 healthy controls. Maternal serum concentrations of IL-6 (8.40 versus 3.30 pg/mL; p = 0.002) and IL-1β (2.20 versus 0.50 pg/mL; p = 0.003) were significantly higher in patients with PTL as compared to healthy pregnant women. The IL-1β concentration (13.60 versus 1.20 pg/mL; p = 0.02) was significantly higher in the serum of mothers whose babies developed early-onset infections, than in mothers of newborns that were healthy. However, its predictive value, and the value of the other cytokines studied, was poor. In addition, IL-1β levels (28.79 versus 5.19 pg/mL; p = 0.001) were significantly higher in patients with histological chorionamnionitis, than in those without the condition,. The cut-off value of ≥ 14 pg/mL predicted inflammatory changes with a sensitivity of 80%, specificity of 86%, PPV of 80% and NPV of 86%. IL-1β seems to be of moderate value in the prediction of histological chorioamnionitis.

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