Osteomyelitis, or bone infection, is a major worldwide cause of morbidity. Treatment is frequently unsatisfactory, yet little is known about pathogenesis of infection. Plasma tumor necrosis factor (TNF), interleukin (IL)-6, and IL-8 concentrations were measured before and after lipopolysaccharide stimulation of whole blood from patients with bacterial and tuberculous osteomyelitis and from controls. Patients with bacterial and tuberculous osteomyelitis mounted an acute-phase response and were anemic and febrile. However, plasma IL-6 concentrations were significantly elevated in only tuberculous osteomyelitis patients (vs. controls, P < .05). IL-6 concentrations correlated with erythrocyte sedimentation rate, C-reactive protein level, and plasma albumin concentration, all acute-phase markers. There were no other correlations between cytokine concentrations and clinical data. Following ex vivo stimulation, TNF, IL-6, and IL-8 were secreted equally by patients and controls. In summary, tuberculous osteomyelitis is characterized by elevated systemic IL-6 concentrations associated with an acute-phase response. For further insight into immunopathology of osteomyelitis, studies on infected bone are required.
No takes yet. Share an insight, caveat, or question.
Evans et al. (1998) studied this question.