Journal of infection and chemotherapy : official journal of the Japan Society of Chemotherapy
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J. Infect. Chemother. · Apr 2004
Plasma hepatocyte growth factor is increased in early-phase sepsis.
To elucidate the involvement of hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) in systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) and sepsis, we investigated the plasma levels of HGF, as well as those of various proinflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokines, in 50 patients who visited our emergency department (ED). The patients were divided into four groups, depending on the existence of SIRS and infection: group 1 (G1), no infection and no SIRS; group 2 (G2), infection and no SIRS; group 3 (G3), no infection and SIRS; and group 4 (G4), infection and SIRS (e.g., sepsis). ⋯ High plasma HGF was significantly correlated with the presence of infection and with serum total bilirubin (TB) level on multivariate logistic regression analysis. Considering HGF's known functions, we speculated that high plasma HGF levels may indicate the occurrence or necessity for tissue protection and regeneration after acute systemic insults in sepsis.