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Pediatric Rheumatology
Published in: Pediatric Rheumatology 1/2017

Open Access 01-12-2017 | Research article

Observational study of Interleukin-21 (IL-21) does not distinguish Kawasaki disease from other causes of fever in children

Authors: Rachel Engelberg, Meghan Martin, Brian H. Wrotniak, Mark Daniel Hicar

Published in: Pediatric Rheumatology | Issue 1/2017

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Abstract

Background

Kawasaki disease (KD) is a febrile childhood vasculitis of unknown etiology. The diagnosis is highly concerning as over a quarter of children who fail to receive timely treatment with intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) will develop coronary aneurysms. Diagnosis relies on proper symptomatology and is supported by non-specific markers of inflammation. Previous studies have identified elevated plasma levels of interleukin-21 (IL-21) as a sensitive and specific biomarker in KD. The aim of this study is to assess the validity of IL-21 as a diagnostic biomarker for KD in febrile children in North America.

Methods

Plasma samples were collected from children who presented to an urban Emergency Department in North America. IL-21 levels were measured using commercial ELISA kits in 12 KD versus 60 controls subjects.

Results

Our study shows that IL-21 levels were non-specifically elevated across all febrile children, irrespective of KD diagnosis. Length of fever prior to sample collection does not correlate with IL-21 levels. Other inflammatory markers and laboratory values were also compared to IL-21 and show no significant correlation.

Conclusions

Since IL-21 is elevated non-specifically in this cohort, our data supports that IL-21 is not an appropriate biomarker for diagnosis of KD in North American pediatric populations.
Appendix
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Metadata
Title
Observational study of Interleukin-21 (IL-21) does not distinguish Kawasaki disease from other causes of fever in children
Authors
Rachel Engelberg
Meghan Martin
Brian H. Wrotniak
Mark Daniel Hicar
Publication date
01-12-2017
Publisher
BioMed Central
Published in
Pediatric Rheumatology / Issue 1/2017
Electronic ISSN: 1546-0096
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1186/s12969-017-0163-3

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