Evaluation of pro-inflammatory cytokines in nutritionally stunted Egyptian children

ObjectivesStunting affects 32% of children living in developing countries and has a major impact on child health and development. In this study, we aimed to assess the pro-inflammatory cytokines and some micronutrients among the healthy control and nutritionally stunted Egyptian children.Subjects and methodsA total of 88 children were enrolled; 60 stunted children and 28 non-stunted of matched age and sex. Clinical, demographic characteristics, serum levels of calcium, magnesium, and zinc were measured. Plasma levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFα) and C - reactive protein (CRP) were measured in these subjects.ResultsStunted children showed a marked decrease in weight and weight-for-age Z score (WAZ) versus healthy one. Significant reduction in the serum level of Ca, Mg, and Zn was detected in stunted children compared to those of the healthy control subjects. Moreover, the mean serum levels of IL-6 (pg/ml) (1.5 Vs 1.6), TNFα (pg/ml) (1.7 Vs 1.8) and CRP (mg/l) (0.7 Vs 1) were significantly higher among the stunted group compared to control.ConclusionNutritionally stunted Egyptian children have lowered serum levels of Zn. Ca, and Mg, in addition to elevated serum levels of proinflammatory cytokines (Il-6, TNFα, and CRP).