Abstract
BACKGROUND: Studies have reported that Acute Stanford type A aortic dissection (ATAAD) is associated with hypoxia and inflammation. This study aims to explore the levels of HIF-1α and IL-6 in the serum of patients with ATAAD, and to analyze the association between these two factors as well as their potential clinical significance. METHODS: Serum samples were collected from 82 ATAAD patients and 19 healthy controls. Subsequently, the levels of HIF-1α and IL-6 in the serum of these samples were measured using the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). RESULTS: The results showed that the serum HIF-1α level in patients with ATAAD were significantly reduced compared with the healthy control group [10.72 (7.28,14.92) vs. 19.54 ± 8.07 pg/mL, p < 0.0001], and the serum IL-6 level were significantly increased [3.12 (1.97, 9.13) vs. 1.13 (0.98, 1.42) pg/mL, p < 0.0001]. Moreover, there was no statistical difference of HIF-1α level in ATAAD patients with or without hypoxemia and IL-6. However, there was a significant positive correlation between the levels of IL-6 and the expression of HIF-1α (r = 0.5435, P < 0.0001). CONCLUSION: We found that levels of HIF-1α and IL-6 were abnormal in patients with ATAAD. Moreover, the HIF-1α and IL-6 level in ATAAD patients were positively correlated, suggesting that HIF-1α and IL-6 may play roles simultaneously during the development of acute aortic dissection.