CRP, IL-2 and TNF-α level in patients with uremia receiving hemodialysis

Abstract

Uremia is a serious threat to health. Infection associated with inflammation frequently occurs in patients with uremia during hemodialysis. This study aimed to investigate the association between serum inflammatory factors and uremia in patients prior to and following hemodialysis. Patients with uremia (n=200) receiving continuous high throughput hemodialysis that had hospital-acquired infection were enrolled between August 2013 and August 2015. Additionally, 200 cases of healthy volunteers were selected as the control. Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction, ELISA and western blotting were performed to determine serum C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin 2 (IL-2), and tumor necrosis factorα levels (TNF-α) prior to hemodialysis and 8 months after hemodialysis to explore the association of CRP, IL-2 and TNF-α with uremia. CRP, IL-2 and TNF-α levels were lower at 8 months after hemodialysis than before, and the difference was statistically significant. CRP, IL-2 and TNF-α levels in uremia patients at 8 months after hemodialysis were similar with that in the normal control. CRP expression in patients with uremia was positively correlated with IL-2 and TNF-α expression. Patients with uremia with hospital-acquired infection receiving continuous high throughput blood purification presented increased levels of inflammatory factor in the serum. In conclusion, uremia patients receiving maintenance hemodialysis with hospital-acquired infection had increased serum inflammatory factors and high throughput hemodialysis significantly decreased CRP, IL-2 and TNF-α levels in the serum, suggesting that high throughput hemodialysis may be beneficial for the prevention of the infections in uremia patients.