Interleukin 1β as an inflammatory biomarker in Egyptian children with Familial Mediterranean Fever

Abstract

Background The most common hereditary autoinflammatory disease is the familial Mediterranean fever (FMF). The aim of the current study was to estimate the serum level of interleukin 1β (IL-1β) in FMF children and compare them with healthy controls in correlation to other disease inflammatory markers. Patients and methods This cross-sectional study was conducted on 40 Egyptian FMF children and 40 healthy controls with matching age and sex. Mutational analysis has been performed for all patients. Blood samples were collected from the newly diagnosed FMF children and controls to estimate IL-1β quantitatively by the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay technique. Results The mean age of the patients was 9.89 years. There were 21 (52.5%) males and 19 (47.5%) females. There was statistically significant increase (P=0.001) in the IL-1β of patients (1442.59±749.24 pg/l) compared with controls (85.63±58.02 pg/l) and significantly correlated with the serum amyloid A and C-reactive protein levels. The best cutoff of serum IL-1β level to predict the disease activity was more than or equal to 775 pg/l with a sensitivity of 90%, a specificity of 86%, and an accuracy of 89%. Conclusions Mutations in the MEFV gene can result in uncontrolled production of IL-1β and an exaggerated inflammatory response. This study highlights the importance of IL-1β as an inflammatory biomarker in FMF children.