Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med.,
Volume 157, Number 5, May 1998, 1565-1572
Interleukin-8 and Markers of Neutrophil Degranulation
in Pleural Effusions
ROSA M.
SEGURA,
JOSÉ
ALEGRE,
ENCARNA
VARELA,
RAMON
MARTI,
JOSEP M.
SURIÑACH,
JORDI
JUFRESA,
LLUIS
ARMADANS,
CARLES
PASCUAL,
and
TOMÁS FERNÁNDEZ
de SEVILLA
Serveis de Bioquímica, Medicina Interna, i Epidemiologia, Hospital General Universitari Vall d'Hebron, Barcelona, Spain
In order to know the degree of interleukin-8 (IL-8) production in the pleural space and its relationship to neutrophil activation, IL-8, neutrophil elastase (NE), and myeloperoxidase (MPO) were assessed in blood and pleural fluid (PF) of 219 patients with pleural effusions. Correlations between
blood and PF IL-8, NE, and MPO were either absent or weak, except for IL-8 in transudates (r = 0.6745, p < 0.001). PF IL-8, NE, and MPO concentrations in cases of empyema were higher than in
cases of effusion of other causes (p < 0.001). No significant differences in inflammatory markers were
observed between parapneumonic and tuberculous fluids. IL-8, NE, and MPO levels in malignant,
nonspecific, and transudative effusions were lower than in those due to infection, the lowest levels
corresponding to transudates. No significant correlation was observed between PF IL-8 and neutrophil count in any group; in contrast, IL-8 was associated with NE and MPO in empyema (r = 0.7545, and r = 0.7283; p < 0.001), tuberculosis (r = 0.4016, p = 0.008 and r = 0.6545, p < 0.001), and nonspecific effusions (r = 0.3748, p = 0.007 and r = 0.3085, p = 0.028). Our results indicate that local
production of markers of the nonspecific inflammatory response is high in both chronic and acute
pleural infection, and suggest a role for IL-8 in the release of NE and MPO.
