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Updated: Jun 20, 2026

Noninvasive Sampling of Mucosal Lining Fluid for the Quantification of In Vivo Upper Airway Immune-mediator Levels
Published on: August 7, 2017
Mechanical ventilation of newborns infant changes in plasma pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines
Betania Bohrer1, Rita C Silveira, Eurico C Neto
1Department of Pediatrics, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, and Newborn Section, Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil.
Objective:
To evaluate plasma levels of interleukin (IL)-1beta, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha in newborn infants immediately before and after 2 hours of mechanical ventilation.
Study Design:
Term and late preterm neonates with no history of mechanical ventilation and/or ventilatory support were studied prospectively. Exclusion criteria were congenital malformations, congenital infections, use of nitric oxide, resuscitation with positive-pressure ventilation, and any procedure in the delivery room or neonatal intensive care unit that resulted in tracheal intubation. Blood samples for IL-1beta, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, and TNF-alpha levels were collected before intubation and mechanical ventilation and 2 hours later.
Results:
Nineteen newborn infants with gestational age 35.8 +/- 1.9 weeks and birth weight 2280 +/- 370 g were included. Pro-inflammatory cytokines increased: IL-8 (2.5-fold), IL-1beta (7.5-fold), and TNF-alpha (10-fold), and the anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-10 decreased by 90%. Although median IL-6 levels were similar between before and after ventilation, IL-6 increased in 89.4% of infants.
Conclusions:
A short period of mechanical ventilation promotes an imbalance of plasma levels of pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokines. The systemic alteration of cytokines in response to mechanical ventilation may lead to ventilator-induced lung injury.
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