Effect of Spinal and General Anesthesia on Serum Cytokine Levels Following Cesarean Section in Preeclampsia

Background: The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of different anesthetic techniques on the release of cytokines interleukin IL-6, IL-10 and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α in preeclampsia patients who undergo cesarean section. Materials and Methods: In the study 40 patients were enrolled with preeclampsia undergoing cesarean section, allocated into two equal groups to receive either general anesthesia (n = 20) or spinal anesthesia (n = 20). Non-invasive hemodynamic monitoring was used. Serum levels of IL-6, IL-10 and TNF-α were measured before and at the end of surgery. Results: There was no significant rise in serum levels of TNF-α in general anesthesia while IL-6 and IL-10 serum levels increased significantly. Also, compared with patients anaesthetized with general anesthesia patients who received regional anesthesia notably had lower levels of IL-6 and IL-10 after surgery (p < 0.05). Conclusion: Spinal anesthesia causes significant difference in post-operation IL-6 and IL-10 serum levels in preeclampsia patients undergoing cesarean section. Nevertheless, neither general nor spinal anesthesia made such effect on serum level of TNF-α. Further studies with higher sample size and comparing preeclamptic patients to healthy mothers undergoing cesarean section are required.