[Changes in serum inflammatory factors in wheezing infants with community-acquired pneumonia].
OBJECTIVE
To study whether infantile wheezing pneumonia has similar immune mechanisms to asthma by determining the levels of serum inflammatory factors in wheezing infants with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP).


METHODS
Forty-two infants with CAP but without wheezing, 47 infants with CAP and wheezing, and 30 healthy infants as a control were recruited in the study. The peripheral blood levels of C-reactive protein, procalcitonin, soluble triggering receptor expressed on myeloid cell-l, interferon-γ, interleukin-4, interleukin-10, and periostin were compared in the three groups.


RESULTS
The serum levels of procalcitonin, soluble triggering receptor expressed on myeloid cell-l, interleukin-4 and interleukin-10 in the two CAP groups were higher than in the control group (P<0.05). The ratio of interferon-γ/interleukin-4 in the wheezing pneumonia group was lower than in the non-wheezing pneumonia and control groups (P<0.05). The serum level of periostin in the wheezing pneumonia group was higher than in the non-wheezing pneumonia and control groups (P<0.05).


CONCLUSIONS
The unbalanced ratio of interferon-γ/interleukin-4 and airway eosinophilic inflammation in wheezing infants with pneumonia suggest infantile pneumonia with wheezing may has similar immune mechanisms to asthma.
Department of Respiration, Wuxi Children's Hospital, Affiliated to Nanjing Medical University, Wuxi, Jiangsu 214023, China. yu98204@163.com.
Zhi-Wei
ZW
Yu
Jun
J
Qian
Xiao-Hong
XH
Gu
Xiao-Juan
XJ
Zhang
Jian-Rong
JR
Pan
Hui-Li
HL
Ju
D002675:Child, Preschool; D017714:Community-Acquired Infections / Q000276:immunology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007371:Interferon-gamma / Q000097:blood; D016753:Interleukin-10 / Q000097:blood; D015847:Interleukin-4 / Q000097:blood; D008297:Male; D008562:Membrane Glycoproteins / Q000097:blood; D011014:Pneumonia / Q000276:immunology*; D011971:Receptors, Immunologic / Q000097:blood; D012135:Respiratory Sounds / Q000276:immunology*; D000073871:Triggering Receptor Expressed on Myeloid Cells-1
D008562:Membrane Glycoproteins; D011971:Receptors, Immunologic; C408842:TREM1 protein, human; D000073871:Triggering Receptor Expressed on Myeloid Cells-1; D016753:Interleukin-10; D015847:Interleukin-4; D007371:Interferon-gamma