Serum Interleukin (IL)-6, Lipid Profile, and Association With Disease Severity in Patients With Psoriasis: A Cross-Sectional Study.

OBJECTIVES

This study estimated the lipid profile and inflammatory biomarker (interleukin-6, IL-6) levels in patients with psoriasis and explored the association between lipid profiles and inflammatory biomarkers (IL-6) in assessing the severity of the disease.

METHODOLOGY: This cross-sectional study was conducted in the Department of Biochemistry, in association with the Department of Dermatology, at the Veer Surendra Sai Institute of Medical Sciences and Research, Burla, from November 2022 to June 2023. A fully automated analyzer (Cobas C311, Roche Diagnostics, Mannheim, Germany) was used to estimate the lipid profile, while the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (Erba, Transasia Bio-medicals Ltd., Mumbai, India) was used to estimate the inflammatory marker (IL-6). Data were analyzed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 21.0 (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY). An unpaired t-test was conducted to examine the relationship between two variables. A p value of <0.05 was considered significant. The correlation among IL-6, lipid profile, and psoriasis area severity index (PASI) score was analyzed using Pearson's correlation coefficient. Quantitative data were expressed as means and standard deviations.

RESULTS

Of the 102 study participants, 68 had psoriasis alone, and 34 had psoriasis with arthritis (psoriatic arthritis, PsA). Higher mean serum concentrations of IL-6, total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein, and triglycerides were found in patients with PsA compared to those with psoriasis alone. In patients with PsA, TC and IL-6 showed a strong positive correlation with the PASI score. In contrast, high-density lipoprotein showed a negative correlation with PASI (r = -0.036, p < 0.05).

CONCLUSION

In conclusion, our study revealed lipid profile abnormalities and increased IL-6 activity in PsA patients. By measuring inflammatory markers (IL-6) and lipid profiles early in the disease process, we can employ preventive strategies to better manage and improve survival and quality of life in patients with psoriasis.