Plasma interleukin-18 concentration: a novel marker of myocardial ischemia rather than necrosis in humans.

Objective: Myocardial ischemia contributes to cytokine expression in the myocardium in animals; therefore, plasma interleukin-18 concentration may be a good marker of myocardial ischemia/injury in patients with possible acute coronary syndrome. We sought to determine whether increases in plasma interleukin-18 concentrations might be indicative of myocardial ischemia in patients with acute coronary syndrome.

Methods: Plasma interleukin-18 concentrations were assessed in 27 acute coronary syndrome patients in whom creatine kinase activity was within normal range on admission, in addition to 10 controls.