Background/Purpose:  
To evaluate the role of interleukin-6 (IL-6) in predictinglong-term disease prognosis for Takayasu’s arteritis (TA).

Methods: Thirty-one patients diagnosed with TA between January 2012 and December 2013 were enrolled. The baseline IL-6 levels were detected in all, and a 5-year follow-up was suggested. Data including clinical presentations, laboratory indices, treatments, and radiological images during the 5-year follow-up were recorded. The value of IL-6 in predicting disease relapse and imaging progression was analyzed.

Results: Patients were divided into three groups according to baseline serum IL-6 levels: low group (≤8.8 pg/mL, n=13); medium group (8.9–18.9 pg/mL, n=9); and high group (≥19.0 ng/mL, n=9). Patients in the high and medium group had higher disease activity than those in the low group (p< 0.01). Baseline IL-6 levels were correlated with luminal stenosis (p< 0.05), although no significant correlations with long-term imaging progression were observed. Patients with more than 2 episodes of disease relapses were more commonly seen in the medium and high groups (p=0.03). Multivariate Cox proportional hazard regression analysis indicated that medium and high IL-6 levels were both positive predictors for disease relapse (medium group: HR 8.26, 95%CI 0.67–53.44, p=0.072; high group: HR 14.77, 95%CI 1.09–92.31, p=0.041) in TA. Goodness-of-fit test further confirmed the value of high levels of IL-6 in predicting disease relapse (R=0.71, R2=0.57, p=0.06).

Conclusion: IL-6 is a valuable predictor of TA disease relapse during long-term follow-up. Thus, treatments targeted at IL-6 pathways may reduce disease relapse and have better long-term prognostic effects for TA patients.

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ACR Meeting Abstracts - https://acrabstracts.org/abstract/interleukin-6-may-predict-disease-relapse-during-long-term-follow-up-in-takayasus-arteritis-in-a-han-chinese-population/