Interleukin-6 as inflammatory marker referring to multiple organ dysfunction syndrome in
severely injured children
Sammanfattning
BACKGROUND:
Despite the suggestion that the inflammatory response in traumatized children is functionally unique,
prognostic markers predicting pediatric multiple organ failure are lacking. We intended to verify
whether Interleukin-6 (IL-6) displays a pivotal role in pediatric trauma similar to adults.
METHODS:
Traumatized children less than 18 years of age with an Injury Severity Score >9 points and
consecutive admission to the hospital's pediatric intensive care unit were included. Organ function
was evaluated according to the score by Marshall et al. while IL-6 levels were measured repetitively
every morning.
RESULTS:
59 traumatized children were included (8.4 ± 4.4 years; 57.6% male gender). Incidence of MODS was
11.9%. No differences were found referring to age, gender, injury distribution or overall injury
severity between children with and without MODS. Increased IL-6 levels during hospital admission
were associated with injury severity (Spearman correlation: r = 0.522, p < 0.001), while an
inconsistent association towards the development of MODS was proven at that time point (Spearman
correlation: r = 0.180, p = 0.231; Pearson's correlation: r = 0.297, p = 0.045). However, increased IL-6
levels during the first two days were no longer associated with the injury severity but a significant
correlation to MODS was measured.
CONCLUSIONS:
The presented prospective study is the first providing evidence for a correlation of IL-6 levels with
injury severity and the incidence of MODS in traumatized children.