Background: Interleukin-6 (IL-6) is one of the inflammatory mediators characterized by elevated levels in ischemic stroke (IS) patients. The present study set out to assess the role of IL-6, as a marker for inflammation, in the severity and prognosis of acute IS.
Methods: In a cross-sectional descriptive study, 45 patients with acute IS were selected. Patients with their first day of stroke were included in the study. National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) and the modified Rankin Scale (mRS) for stroke severity were evaluated on Days 1, 5, 90, and 365. Serum IL-6 level was measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) on days 1 and 5.
Results: In the present study, 45 patients with a mean age of 77.6 ± 4.9 including 32 (71%) men and 13 (28.9%) women were studied. Death occurred in 2 (4.4%) patients before discharge from the hospital; the others, be that as it may, followed the study until Day 365 with a mortality rate of 6 (13.3%). A positive significant correlation was found between IL-6, and NIHSS and mRS of the patients from the time of admission to the end of the follow-up period (P < 0.001, r = 0.6). Moreover, there was a significant correlation between IL-6 and infarction size in brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan (P < 0.001, r = 0.7).
Conclusion: The evidence from the present study suggests that IL-6 contributes to determination of severity of ischemic stroke. In addition, IL-6 concentrations affect clinical outcomes in ischemic stroke.
Keywords: Inflammatory Factors; Interleukin-6; Ischemic Stroke; Stroke Outcome; Stroke Severity.