Study of Serum level of interleukin-17 in cirrhotic patients with spontaneous bacterial peritonitis

Hassouna, Mona Mahmoud; Abdelsameea Mahmoud, Eman; Saied, Sara Ahmed; Mostafa Habib, Manar; Albert Naguib, Mary

doi:10.21608/mid.2025.399203.2965

	Study of Serum level of interleukin-17 in cirrhotic patients with spontaneous bacterial peritonitis
Microbes and Infectious Diseases
Articles in Press, Accepted Manuscript, Available Online from 04 August 2025
Document Type: Original Article
DOI: 10.21608/mid.2025.399203.2965
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Authors
Mona Mahmoud Hassouna¹; Eman Abdelsameea Mahmoud²; Sara Ahmed Saied¹; Manar Mostafa Habib ¹; Mary Albert Naguib¹
¹Clinical Pathology, National Liver Institute, Menoufia University, Egypt
²Hepatology and Gastroenterology, National Liver Institute, Menoufia University, Egypt
Abstract
Background: The most common and dangerous infection seen in cirrhosis patients, particularly those with ascites, is spontaneous bacterial peritonitis (SBP). The pro-inflammatory cytokine family, which includes interleukin-17 (IL-17), aids in the host's defense against external infections. By attracting neutrophils to infection locations, it reduces local tissue inflammation. Objectives: The objective of this study was to evaluate whether serum levels of IL-17 could serve as a useful indicator for identifying SBP in cirrhotic patients. Patients and methods: 89 patients with cirrhotic-induced ascites were included in this research 46 of them had SBP and 43 patients did not have SBP. Following standard examinations, bacteriological culture and ascitic polymorphonuclear leucocyte (PMNL) count were performed on each case. Additionally, an enzyme-linked immunosorbent (ELISA) test based on antibodies was used to measure the serum IL-17 levels. Results: Serum IL-17 levels were markedly higher in SBP individuals than in non-SBP. At a cutoff >135.41 pg/mL, IL-17 showed 91.3% sensitivity, Specificity reached 95.3%, while diagnostic accuracy was 93.3%. The area under the curve (AUC) was 0.983, The associated p-value was less than 0.001, indicating strong statistical relevance. When IL-17 was combined with C-reactive protein (CRP) levels, diagnostic performance improved further, yielding 95.7% sensitivity, 95.3% specificity, and an overall accuracy of 95.5%. The AUC for the combined approach was 0.992, supported by a p-value <0.001. Conclusion: Serum IL-17 may serve as a reliable biomarker for detection of SBP in individuals with liver cirrhosis.
Keywords
interleukin-17; spontaneous bacterial peritonitis; polymorphonuclear leucocyte; C-reactive protein


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