Objective: To assess the role of concentrations of cytokines in peritoneal fluid in estimating the severity of the host's response to the stress of abdominal operations.
Design: Prospective study.
Setting: University hospital, Japan.
Subject: 49 patients who underwent various abdominal operations. Main outcome measures--Correlations between concentrations of tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), interleukin-1 beta (IL-1 beta), and interleukin-6 (IL-6) in peritoneal fluid measured on the first postoperative day on the one hand, and peritoneal bacterial count, length of operation, and operative blood loss, on the other.
Results: The concentrations of all three peritoneal cytokines correlated significantly with length of operation; those of TNF-alpha and IL-1 beta also correlated significantly with peritoneal bacterial count, and that of IL-1 beta with operative blood loss. There were significant correlations between the concentrations of the three cytokines.
Conclusion: These correlations suggest that monitoring of the peritoneal concentrations of TNF-alpha, IL-1 beta, and IL-6 may be helpful in estimating the severity of stress caused by abdominal operations.