A Retrospective Observational Study of the Association Between Plasma Levels of Interleukin 8 in 42 Patients with Sepsis-Induced Myocardial Dysfunction at a Single Center Between 2017 and 2020

BACKGROUND: This retrospective, observational study from a single center aimed to evaluate the association between complement (C)3 and C4, lymphocytes markers CD4 and CD8, and the interleukins IL-1β, IL-2R, IL-6, IL-10, and IL-8 in patients with sepsis-induced myocardial dysfunction (SIMD) and a reduced left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) of < 50%. MATERIAL/METHODS: Patients with sepsis from July 2017 to December 2020 were divided into a SIMD group (42 patients) and NO-SIMD group (214 patients). Diagnostic criteria of sepsis were based on SEPSIS 3.0 guidelines. SIMD was defined as LVEF <50% by echocardiography and global ejection fraction <25% by transpulmonary thermodilution during hospitalization. The lymphocyte markers and interleukins were detected by flow fluorescence immunomicrobead assay, and C3 and C4 were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. RESULTS: Plasma levels of IL-8 in the SIMD group were significantly higher than those in the NO-SIMD group, 133.90 (80.20, 402.79) vs 46.35 (16.80, 125.00) pg/mL (P<0.001). Logistic regression showed that N terminal pro B type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP; 95%CI 1.000–1.000, P<0.001) and IL-8 (95%CI 1.000–1.002, P=0.019) were independent risk factors for SIMD. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis showed NT-proBNP, IL-8, and cardiac troponin T (cTnT) had different predictive values for SIMD: AUC(NT-proBNP) (0.810) >AUC(IL-8) (0.748) >AUC(cTnT) (0.710). The cut-off value of IL-8 was 67.55 pg/mL; using this cut-off value, IL-8 predicted SIMD in sepsis with a sensitivity of 83.3% and specificity of 59.3%. CONCLUSIONS: Increased plasma levels of IL-8 were significantly associated with cardiac dysfunction in patients with SIMD.