Mediators of Inflammation
Volume 2009 (2009), Article ID 106145, 4 pages
doi:10.1155/2009/106145
Clinical Study

The Levels of Tumor Necrosis Factor-Alpha and Interleukin-6 in Patients with Isolated Coronary Artery Ectasia

Mustafa Aydin,1 Ishak Ozel Tekin,2 Sait Mesut Dogan,1 Nesligul Yildirim,1 Mehmet Arasli,2 Muhammet Rasit Sayin,1 and Ziyaettin Aktop1

1Department of Cardiology, School of Medicine, Zonguldak Karaelmas University, Kozlu, 67600 Zonguldak, Turkey
2Department of Immunology, Zonguldak Karaelams Univerisity, Kozlu, 67600 Zonguldak, Turkey

Received 24 October 2008; Accepted 15 April 2009

Academic Editor: Charles Larry Campbell

Copyright © 2009 Mustafa Aydin et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Abstract

Background/Aim. Coronary artery ectasia (CAE) is considered as a variant of atherosclerosis. Tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) are among the sensitive markers of systemic inflammation. The aim of this study was to evaluate the plasma levels of the cytokines; TNF-α and IL-6 in CAE patients. Methods. Plasma concentrations of TNF-α and IL-6 were measured in 36 patients with CAE (28 males, mean age: 58.2±12 years), and results were compared with age and sex-matched controls (n=32) without coronary artery ectasia. TNF-α and IL-6 concentrations in blood were assesed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Results. Baseline characteristics of the two groups were similar. TNF-α and IL-6 levels were significantly higher in CAE group than controls (15.6±11.2 pg/mL versus 7.8±3.7 pg/mL, P<.001, and 17.2±12.6 versus 7.6±2.1 , P<.0001, resp.). Conclusion. CAE patients showed increases in TNF-α and IL-6 levels compared to the controls. This study provides evidence for alterations in the proinflamatory cytokines which suggest the involvement of the immune system in the pathophysiology of CAE. Further placebo-controlled studies are needed to evaluate the clinical significance of this increase in TNF-α and IL-6 levels.