Serum tumour necrosis factor and soluble tumour necrosis factor receptors in juvenile rheumatoid arthritis

Abstract EN

The objective of this study was the evaluation of the status of tumour necrosis factor- (TNF-), soluble tumour necrosis factor receptor 1 and 2 (sTNFR1 and sTNFR2) in patients with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (JRA) and correlation between these levels with clinical and conventional laboratory evidences of disease activity.

Serum TNF-, sTNFR1 and sTNFR2 were measured using enzyme linked immunosorbent assay in 35 patients with JRA.

The patients were 21 girls and 14 boys, their ages ranged from 3-16 years with a mean of 9.2 years.

The studied cases were divided into 3 groups according to the clinical subtypes of their disease, 10 patients had systemic onset JRA, 12 had polyarticular and 13 patients had pauciarticular type of JRA.

15 healthy age matched children were taken as a control group.

Serum levels of TNF  was 55.34 + 33.12 pg/ml which is significantly higher than that of the control (p < 0.05).

Serum TNF- was significantly higher in the 3 studied groups and the highest level was present in the polyarticular type of the disease.

Serum TNF- level correlated poorly with clinical and laboratory evidences of disease activity as it only correlated with ESR and pain score (r = 0.41 and 0.44) respectively.

Serum