HCorrelation of serum IL-6 and SMAD3 levels with neurological impairment and their combined functional outcome value in acute intracerebral hemorrhage.

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the correlation between serum interleukin-6 (IL-6) and signal transducer and activator of DNA3 (SMAD3) levels and neurological dysfunction in patients with acute intracerebral hemorrhage, and to evaluate the predictive value of combined detection for patient functional outcome.

METHODS

A retrospective analysis was conducted on 158 patients with acute intracerebral hemorrhage admitted to the Department of Neurology at our hospital from March 2023 to March 2025. Patients were categorized into better functional outcome (n = 103) and worse functional outcome (n = 55) groups based on modified Rankin Scale (mRS) scores at 6 months post-discharge. Clinical baseline data were collected, and serum IL-6 and SMAD3 levels were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Spearman correlation analysis assessed the relationship between IL and 6, SMAD3, and the NIH Stroke Scale (NIHSS) score. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses identified factors independently associated with worse functional outcome in acute intracerebral hemorrhage patients. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves evaluated the predictive value of serum IL-6, SMAD3, and their combined detection for worse functional outcome.

RESULTS

Serum IL-6 and SMAD3 levels were significantly higher in the worse functional outcome group than in the better functional outcome group (both P < 0.001). Both markers showed significant positive correlations with NIHSS scores (r = 0.469, 0.442; both P < 0.001). Multivariate logistic regression revealed that enlarged hematoma volume, elevated ICH score, elevated serum IL-6, and elevated SMAD3 were independently associated with worse functional outcome in acute intracerebral hemorrhage (all P < 0.05). ROC analysis revealed that the AUC for IL-6 alone was 0.866, for SMAD3 alone was 0.851, and for combined detection was 0.940. Combined detection demonstrated significantly superior efficacy compared to individual markers (all P < 0.05).

CONCLUSION

Serum IL-6 and SMAD3 levels are closely associated with the degree of neurological dysfunction in patients with acute intracerebral hemorrhage. Combined detection of both markers demonstrates high predictive value for worse functional outcome.