[Relationship between liver damage and serum levels of IL-18, TNF-alpha and NO in patients with acute pancreatitis].
OBJECTIVE
To study the relationship between liver damage and the serum levels of interleukin-18 (IL-18), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) and NO in patients with acute pancreatitis (AP).


METHODS
Eighty-seven AP patients were divided into mild AP (MAP) and severe AP (SAP) groups, with 50 healthy subjects serving as the controls. The serum levels of IL-18 and TNF-alpha were determined by ELISA, and NO level was measured by nitrate reductase method. The serum levels of ALT, AST, TB, ALB, LDH, AKP and gamma-GT were also measured.


RESULTS
The incidence of liver damage was 62.06% in these patients. The serum markers of the liver function differed significantly between the AP patients and the control subjects and between SAP and MAP groups before the treatment (P<0.01). The ALB level in SAP group increased significantly after the treatment (P<0.01), and the other indices of the liver function all decreased in both MAP and SAP groups (P<0.01). The serum levels of IL-18, TNF-alpha and NO were higher in the AP patient than in the control subjects (P<0.01), and decreased significantly after the treatment (P<0.01). In AP patients with liver damage, the levels of IL-18, TNF-alpha and NO were obviously higher than those in patients without liver damage and the control group (P<0.01). In AP patients with liver damage, the serum levels of IL-18, TNF-alpha, and NO were positively correlated to ALT and AST levels, and IL-18 was positively correlated to TNF-alpha and NO.


CONCLUSIONS
AP patients have high incidence of liver damage, which is obviously severer in SAP than in MAP patients. The serum levels of IL-18, TNF-alpha and NO are positively correlated to the severity of liver damage in the AP patients, and can be used as indicators for early diagnosis, evaluation of the severity and prognosis of liver damage.
Liang
Jian
J
Department of Digestive Disease, Clinical Laboratory, Affiliated Hospital of Guangdong Medical College, Zhanjiang 524001, China. hnxfm@163.com
Zhou
Yu
Y
Wang
Zhuang
Z
Chen
Hao
H
D000208:Acute Disease; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D020382:Interleukin-18 / Q000097:blood; D008099:Liver / Q000473:pathology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009569:Nitric Oxide / Q000097:blood; D010195:Pancreatitis / Q000097:blood* / Q000473:pathology*; D044967:Serum / Q000737:chemistry; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / Q000097:blood; D055815:Young Adult
D020382:Interleukin-18; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha; D009569:Nitric Oxide