The relationship between cord blood cytokine levels and perinatal factors and retinopathy of prematurity: a gestational age-matched case-control study

To investigate the relationship between cytokine levels in cord blood and perinatal factors and retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) in gestational age-matched, preterm, newborn infants. Each of 20 premature singleton infants with ROP (gestational age < 32 weeks) was matched for gestational age, birth weight, and sex with two control infants without ROP. The concentration of 10 cytokines in cord blood extracted at birth was measured using a multiplex bead array assay. Data on maternal factors, labor and delivery characteristics, and neonatal parameters were also collected from both groups. The variables obtained were compared using the conditional logistic regression model. No differences in the levels of inflammatory cytokines (IL-1β, IL-4, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, IL-12, interferon-γ, and TNF-α) and growth factors (insulin-like growth factor-1 and VEGF) were detected between the two groups. Multivariate conditional logistic regression analysis indicated that elevated maternal leukocyte count on admission and low Apgar scores at 5 minutes were significantly associated with an increased risk of ROP. Cytokine levels in cord blood are not associated with the risk of ROP, whereas elevated maternal blood leukocyte count and low Apgar score are associated with ROP. These data suggest that the determination of cytokine levels in cord blood samples in premature infants may be of little value for predicting ROP.