ABSTRACT
CONTEXT: Estimation of intensive care unit (ICU) length of stay time (LOS) may be challenging, and pro-inflammatory cytokines can be used as a marker for this purpose. OBJECTIVE: The current study aimed to investigate the association between pro-inflammatory cytokine levels and LOS in hyperglycemic patients admitted to adult ICU. DESIGN: This is a prospective observational study. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: All adult ICU patients with a blood glucose level higher than 250 mg/dL, during the study period were included. Hospitalization day demographics were recorded, and plasma IL-6, IL1-ß, and TNF-α concentrations were measured. RESULTS: A total of 74 patients were enrolled in the study. Diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) was positive in 31 patients, and the remaining 43 were in the non-DKA (NDKA) group. There was no difference between the two groups in terms of age, gender, LOS, hemoglobin, hematocrit, lactate levels, and platelets count. IL-6, IL-1ß, and TNF-α levels did not show any difference between DKA and NDKA groups (p=0.784, 0.413, and 0.288, respectively). There was a positive correlation between IL-6 levels and LOS (n=74, Pearson correlation=0.330; p=0.004). CONCLUSIONS: Among pro-inflammatory cytokines, IL-6 showed a better performance for the prediction of LOS than IL-1ß, TNF-α, and CRP.
