Association Between Inflammatory Cytokines (IL‐6 and IL‐10) and Trauma Severity: Correlations With Shock Index and ABC Score in Trauma Patients—A Prospective Observational Study

Background and Aims Trauma is a leading cause of disability and mortality worldwide, with outcomes influenced by inflammatory responses. This study evaluated the association between trauma severity scores—Shock Index (SI) and Assessment of Blood Consumption (ABC) score—and systemic cytokine levels (IL‐6 and IL‐10) to assess their potential role in predicting clinical outcomes in trauma patients. Methods A prospective observational study was conducted with 20 adult trauma patients admitted to a tertiary hospital in São Paulo, Brazil (August 2022–December 2022). Blood samples were collected at admission (T0) and 48 h later (T1). Serum IL‐6 and IL‐10 were measured by ELISA. Severity was classified using SI (heart rate/systolic blood pressure; > 1 indicates hypovolemic shock) and ABC score ( ≥ 2 parameters suggest high transfusion risk). Statistical analysis used the Wilcoxon signed‐rank test (paired comparisons), Mann–Whitney for variation, and Spearman's correlation with 95% bootstrap confidence intervals (two‐tailed α = 0.05). Results Patients were predominantly male (18/20, 90%) with blunt trauma (12/20, 60%). IL‐10 levels decreased significantly from T0 to T1 (median [IQR]: 7.7 [−1.5 to 20.2] pg/mL vs. −1.4 [−5.4 to 5.9] pg/mL; median difference = −7.2 pg/mL, 95% CI −16.1 to −1.2; p = 0.013). IL‐6 remained stable ( p = 0.65), resulting in an increased IL‐6/IL‐10 ratio ( p = 0.012). IL‐6 at T0 correlated positively with ABC score (Spearman's ρ = 0.50, 95% CI 0.08–0.77, p = 0.03). IL‐10 at T0 correlated positively with Shock Index ( ρ = 0.47, 95% CI 0.04–0.75, p = 0.04). Conclusion Trauma severity scores (ABC and SI) were associated with dynamic cytokine changes, particularly declining IL‐10, suggesting a shift toward a pro‐inflammatory state 48 h post‐injury. These findings support the potential integration of cytokine profiling with clinical scores to improve trauma risk stratification and guide early intervention.