Thorax
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Comparative Study
Comparison of systemic cytokine levels in patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome, severe pneumonia, and controls.
The inflammatory response has been widely investigated in patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and pneumonia. Studies investigating the diagnostic values of serum cytokine levels have yielded conflicting results and only little information is available for the differential diagnosis between ARDS and pneumonia. ⋯ Serum TNF-alpha levels were higher in patients with ARDS than in those with severe pneumonia or in control subjects. Multivariate results suggest that the levels of systemic TNF-alpha and IL-1beta reflect the severity of the lung injury rather than the diagnosis.