Correlation between serum endothelin, IL-10 and hs-CRP levels and neurological impairment in patients with acute cerebral infarction

Objective To investigate the correlation between serum endothelin (ET) -1, interleukin (IL) -10 and high-sensitivity C reactive protein (hs-CRP) and neurological impairment in patients with acute cerebral infarction (ACI) . Methods A total of 900 ACI patients, who stayed in the Department of Neurology of our hospital between March 2015 and October 2016, were included as the subjects in the study, including 656 of acute phase and 244 of subacute phase. The degree of neurological impairment was assessed according to the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) , and the patients were thereby divided into the mild group (n=286) , moderate group (n=448) and severe group (n=166) . All patients underwent head CT to examine the area of cerebral infarction. Serum ET-1, IL-10 and hs-CRP concentrations were measured. Pearson correlation analysis and multivariate Logistic regression analysis were performed. Results The incidence of massive cerebral infarction was lowest in the mild group (12.24%) , followed by the moderate group (23.44%) and the severe group (31.93%) (P<0.05) . By order of the mild, moderate, and severe groups, the NIHSS scores, serum ET-1 concentrations[ (97.86±19.42) μg/L, (110.16±22.50) μg/L, (128.92±23.71) μg/L], and hs-CRP concentrations [ (25.62±5.14) mg/L, (28.11±5.49) mg/L, (34.30±6.97) mg/L] significantly increased, whereas the IL-10 concentrations [ (12.41±2.72) pg/ml, (9.12±2.15) pg/ml, (5.97±1.37) pg/ml] significantly decreased, respectively. Pearson correlation analysis showed that the NIHSS scores were positively correlated with serum ET-1 and hs-CRP (r=0.69, P<0.05) , and negatively correlated with IL-10 in ACI patients (r=-0.75, P<0.05) . Logistic regression analysis showed that the concentrations of serum ET-1 and hs-CRP were risk factors for the degree of neurological impairment in ACI patients, while IL-10 was a protective factor for the degree of neurological impairment (P<0.05) . Conclusion Serum ET-1, IL-10 and hs-CRP may reflect the degree of neurological impairment in ACI patients. Closely monitoring and symptomatic interventions, such as improving the endothelial function and regulating the expression of serum inflammatory factors, should be given in clinical settings. Key words: Cerebral infarction; Endothelin-1; Interleukin-10; Hs-CRP; High-sensitivity C-reactive protein