Objectives: The present study aimed to estimate the value of serum
interleukin-33 (IL-33) levels in infants with cholestasis, correlate serum
IL-33 levels with the clinicopathological profile of infants with cholestasis, and compare its level with that of healthy infants who served as
control.
Methods: Sixty infants with cholestasis were enrolled in the present study
and divided into biliary atresia (BA) group and non-BA group, in addition to
30 healthy infants as a control group. All infants were analyzed for their
clinical and biochemical features, histopathological profile, and serum level of
IL-33 by enzyme-linked immune sorbent assay.
Results: Serum level of IL-33 in BA group (median 48.0, interquartile
range: 28.9–106.2) was significantly higher than that of the non-BA group
(median 17.3, interquartile range: 13.7–18.8 pg/mL) and both were higher
than that of the control group. There was a positive correlation between
serum IL-33 and aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase,
bilirubin (total and direct) levels, and fibrosis stage among the BA group.
Serum IL-33 at a cut-off value of 20.8 pg/mL can detect BA with a
specificity of 95% and a sensitivity of 96.7%.
Conclusion: The significantly higher production of IL-33 in patients with
BA compared to non-BA suggests a potential role of IL-33 for initiation and
progression of the disease process, also, IL-33 may have a diagnostic role in
infants with BA.