title: Circulating interleukin (IL)-1 beta, IL-6 and tumor necrosis factor-alpha in children with febrile infection--a comparison with C-reactive protein.
abstract: Circulating interleukin (IL)-1 beta, IL-6, and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha were examined in 42 febrile children with fever lasting more than 4 days. Their diagnosis were probable viral syndrome in 22, urinary tract infection (UTI) in 10, and probable bacterial pneumonia in 10. None of our study patients had detectable serum IL-1 beta. TNF-alpha levels were significantly higher in children with pneumonia than in those with viral syndrome (p < 0.01). Children with UTI and pneumonia had significantly higher IL-6 and CRP, compared to those with probable viral syndrome (p < 0.01 for both IL-6 and CRP). When appropriate cutoff values are chosen, IL-6 had greatly improved specificity (86.4%, > 20 pg/ml) to demonstrate UTI and pneumonia, as compared to that using CRP (48%, > 40 mg/l). After three days' antibiotic treatment, IL-6 fell to control levels in children with UTI and pneumonia, while CRP remained elevated. There was no difference in TNF-alpha values before and after treatment. Thus, IL-6, rather than IL-1 beta and TNF-alpha, may be a helpful diagnostic tool for evaluation of pediatric febrile infection. Sequential studies involving more patients are needed to determine whether IL-6 is better than CRP in this clinical setting.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Chang Gung Children's Hospital, Taoyuan, Taiwan.
authors.forename: S J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.forename: J L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Huang
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D002097:C-Reactive Protein / Q000032:analysis; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D005334:Fever / Q000097:blood* / Q000188:drug therapy; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007375:Interleukin-1 / Q000097:blood*; D015850:Interleukin-6 / Q000097:blood*; D008297:Male; D018410:Pneumonia, Bacterial / Q000097:blood; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / Q000032:analysis*; D014552:Urinary Tract Infections / Q000097:blood; D014777:Virus Diseases / Q000097:blood
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D015415:Biomarkers; D007375:Interleukin-1; D015850:Interleukin-6; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha; D002097:C-Reactive Protein