Evaluation of Subclinical Inflammation in Children with Premature Adrenarche

Objective: The objectives of this study were to compare the serum inflammatory markers, interleukin-6 (IL-6), highly sensi-tive C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), and fetuin-A, in patients with premature adrenarche (PA) and the control group.
Materials and Methods: This single-center cross-sectional study included 85 non-obese and pre-pubertal children. After 8–12 h of fasting, blood glucose, HDL, LDL, triglyceride, cholesterol, insulin, dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate, total testosterone, 17-OH PG, IL-6, hs-CRP, and Fetuin-A levels were measured and compared in a convenience sample of PA (n=35) and a healthy volunteers of control (n=50) group.
Results: The mean age (7.34±0.62 years vs. 7.09±0.77 years, respectively) and sex (82% girl vs. 80% girl, respectively) of the PA and control groups were similar (p>0.05). Fasting insulin levels (10.9±6.21 Uu/mL vs. 7.4±5.9 Uu/mL; p<0.001), HOMA-IR (2.06±0.63 vs. 1.36±1.00; p=0.017), FGIR (11.31±5.60 vs. 16.46±8.52; p=0.004), and QUICKI (0.35±0.02 vs. 0.37±0.03; p<0.001) levels were different in PA and control groups. IL-6 level higher in PA group than controls [2.7 (3.30) pg/mL vs. 3.02 (1.31) pg/mL, p=0.035], while plasma Fetuin-A [522.02 (715.86) mg/L; 519.4 (945.97) mg/L, p=0.434] and hs-CRP [0.73 (1.02) mg/dL; 1.0 (1.12) mg/dL, p=0.439] levels were similar. IL-6 cutoff value for PA was calculated as 2.06 with 72.7% sensitivity and 48.8% specificity for all study groups (AUC=0.641, p=0.036).
Conclusion: The high IL-6 levels may be an indicator of chronic subclinical inflammation in PA cases. These children should be followed closely in terms of metabolic disorders.