ELEVATED INTERLEUKIN-8 LEVELS IN THE URINE OF CHILDREN WITH RENAL SCARRING AND OR VESICOURETERAL REFLUX/

Purpose: Elevation of urinary levels of interleukin-6 and 8 has been o bserved in patients with acute urinary tract infections. However, to o ur knowledge there have been no studies concerning the secretion of in terleukin-6 and 8 into the urine after acute inflammation has resolved and renal scarring has occurred. On the other hand, it is well known that cytokines are variously related to glomerular diseases and, thus, it is possible that the progression of reflux nephropathy depends on interleukin-6 or 8. Therefore, we assessed urinary levels of interleuk in-6 and 8 in children with vesicoureteral reflux and/or renal scarrin g. Materials and Methods: We evaluated interleukin-6 and interleukin-8 levels in the urine of 32 children without a urinary tract infection who presented or were admitted to our hospital because of vesicoureter al reflux between April and December 1994. Interleukin-6 and 8 were de termined using a commercially available human enzyme-linked immunosorb ent assay kit and the 2-step sandwich method. Results: Urinary interle ukin-6 levels were below the lower detection limit (less than 10 pg./m l.) in all samples. There were statistically significant differences b etween urinary interleukin-8 levels in children with and without renal scarring (p = 0.001), and with and without vesicoureteral (p = 0.0246 ). Conclusions: Urinary interleukin-8 is an effective marker for renal scarring and vesicoureteral reflux.