Serum Interleukin-33 is a Predictor of Depression in Patients with Acute Ischemic Stroke

The study aimed to investigate the relationship between serum interleukin-33 (IL-33) concentrations and poststroke depression (PSD) in patients with acute ischemic stroke (AIS).Serum IL-33 concentrations were determined using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Patients were assigned to the PSD group after a six-month follow-up if their score on the 17- item Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression was ≥7 or to the non-PSD group if their score was <7. IL-33 was used to predict the risk of PSD using multivariate logistic regression analysis, while a receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to analyze the accuracy of PSD prediction. In addition, the modified Rankin scale (mRS) was used for follow-up scoring six months after disease onset.A total of 151 AIS patients and 40 healthy controls were included in this study. ROC curve results showed that the area under the curve was 0.684 (95% confidence interval: 0.594-0.774,Ρ=0.001) for IL-33 as a predictor of PSD. When the IL-33 concentration was ≤71.85 ng/L, prediction sensitivity and specificity were 77.5% and 57.3%, respectively. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that IL-33 concentration of ≤71.85 ng/L was an independent predictor of PSD (95% CI: 1.129-7.515, P=0.027). The follow-up mRS data showed that serum IL-33 is a protective prognosis factor in patients with AIS (95% CI: 0.954-0.997, P=0.024).Serum IL-33 is an independent predictor of PSD and a protective prognosis factor in patients with AIS.