The role of interleukin in ectopic pregnancy: A systematic review

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Ectopic pregnancy (EP) is the implantation of an embryo outside the eutopic cavity with the most location of EP is in the fallopian tube (FT), known as tubal EP (TEP). The FT of TEP expresses higher levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines such as interleukin-1 (IL-1), IL-6, and IL-8. AIM: The study aimed to look systematically into the current literature and carefully analyze the results to explore the role of IL in EP. METHODS: Three independent reviewers conducted the literature search through some electronic databases searching for articles fulfilling inclusion and exclusion criteria. The lead author independently assessed the risk of bias of each of the 313 articles identified in database searching, 12 articles met the criteria for this review. CONCLUSION: IL-6 and IL-8 have diagnostic significance in predicting EP with the cutoff levels of IL-6 and IL-8 which were 26.48 and 40 pg/mL. Further, research is needed for the role of other interleukins in EP.