Hb concentration correlated negatively with serum IL-6 (r = -0.37, P = 0.008), sFas (r = -0.35, P = 0.01), and Epo (r = -0.27, P = 0.04), while serum sFas correlated positively with iron levels (r = 0.36, P = 0.008) and IL-6 (r = 0.28, P = 0.04) in the AKI group.
Interleukin-6 (IL-6) is an inflammatory cytokine that plays important roles in the inflammatory response and may be useful for predicting the clinical outcomes in patients with AKI.
Renal IL-6 mRNA expression was increased in mice with either AKI or CKD, suggesting the kidney is the source for the increased serum IL-6 levels in the uremic state.