ABSTRACT
<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To study the roles of serum and urinary interleukins (IL)-13Ralpha2, IL-4, IL-6, IL-8 and tumor necrosis factor-alpha(TNF-alpha) in pediatric Henoch-Schonlein purpura (HSP).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Serum and urinary levels of IL-13Ralpha2, IL-4, IL-6, IL-8 and TNF-alpha were examined using ELISA in 52 children with HSP and 45 healthy children. The results were compared between the two groups.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Serum levels of IL-13Ralpha2, IL-4, IL-6, IL-8 and TNF-alpha in HSP patients with or without renal lesions were higher than those in the control group (p<0.01 or 0.05). Urinary levels of IL-6 and TNF-alpha in HSP patients without renal lesions were higher than those in the control group (p<0.05). Except for urinary levels of IL-6 and TNF-alpha, urinary IL-13Ralpha2 levels in HSP patients with renal lesions (HSPN) were higher than those in the control group (p<0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Cytokines IL-13Ralpha2, IL-4, IL-6, IL-8 and TNF-alpha may play roles in the pathogenesis of pediatric HSP/HSPN.</p>