Abstract
OBJECTIVES: To analyze the clinical significance of Toll-Like Receptor 7/Interleukin-23/Interleukin-17 (TLR7/IL-23/IL-17) signaling pathway in patients with Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS). METHOD: The clinical data of 85 patients with ARDS were retrospectively analyzed and set as the ARDS group, and the clinical data of 85 healthy participants during the same period were set as the healthy control group. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression were used to analyze risk the factors affecting the prognosis of ARDS patients. RESULTS: TheTLR7 mRNA expression and IL-23 and IL-17 levels in peripheral blood mononuclear cells were higher in the ARDS group than in the control group (p < 0.05). TLR7 mRNA expression, IL-23, IL-17, Surfactant Protein-D (SP-D), and Clara Cell protein-16 (CC-16) levels were the highest in the severe group, followed by the moderate group, and the lowest in the mild group, while Oxygenation Index (OI) was the lowest in the severe group, followed by the moderate group, and the highest in the mild group (p < 0.05). Multivariate logistic regression analysis found that the disease grade (severe), TLR7 mRNA expression, IL-23 level, and IL-17 level were the risk factors affecting the 28-d survival status of ARDS patients (OR > 1, p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: In ARDS patients, the TLR7/IL-23/IL-17 signaling pathway is activated. The expression of this pathway is closely related to the severity of the disease and the levels of lung injury markers, and it is a risk factor that may have a direct impact on the prognosis of ARDS patients.