Serum Cytokine Levels in Patients with Chronic Atopic Dermatitis: a Useful Clinical Marker for Disease Activity

Abstract

Objective: To measure the serum level of IL4, IL10 and IFN-gamma of Atopic patients before and after treatment with tacrolimus ointment or topical steroid by using enzyme linked immunosorbant assay (ELISA) to evaluate the disease activity. Methods: IL4, IL10 and IFN-gamma concentrations in the serum were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay in fifty atopic dermatitis patients were giving two types of treatment and 43/50 were re-analyzed after one month of treatment with tacrolimus or topical and systemic steroids. The severity of atopic dermatitis was graded on the criteria of Hanifin and Rajika. The disease activity was assessed by each patient on a visual analogue scale (VAS). Results: Higher serum IFN-γ, IL-10 and IL-4 concentrations were found in AD patients sera at the time of diagnosis and correlated with disease activity before and after treatment. Serum IFN-γ, IL-10 and IL-4 concentrations also correlated with VAS scores for itching, skin condition; overall skin symptoms and total VAS score. Serum IFN-γ concentration could be a good indicator to define the degree of the general activity in chronic AD patients, also IFN-γ can play a role in the immuno-pathogenesis of AD, and furthermore may be used in the diagnosis and follow up of the disease in addition to other parameters. Conclusion: The sera of patients group revealed a statistically significant increase in the concentration of IFN-gamma, IL-4 and IL-10 before treatment when compared with that of the same patients after treatment with topical tacrolimus-steroid and also there were no statistically significant differences between two treatments.