The goal of this study was to assess the value of serum interleukin-33 (IL-33) levels in newborns with cholestasis, connect serum IL-33 levels with the clinicopathological profile of children with cholestasis, and compare its level to that of healthy infants who acted as controls. In the current study, sixty babies with cholestasis were split into biliary atresia (BA) and non-BA groups, with 30 healthy infants serving as a control group. By enzyme-linked immune sorbent test, all babies were evaluated for clinical and biochemical characteristics, histopathological profile, and blood level of IL-33. Serum IL-33 levels were substantially greater in the BA group than in the non-BA group, and both were higher than in the control group. In the BA group, there was a positive association between serum IL-33 and aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, bilirubin levels, and fibrosis stage. With a cut-off value of 20.8 pg/mL, serum IL-33 may detect BA with a specificity of 95% and a sensitivity of 96.7 percent.
The considerably greater production of IL-33 in BA patients compared to non-BA patients implies that IL-33 may play a role in the beginning and development of the illness process; moreover, IL-33 may have a diagnostic function in BA babies.
