Gender-Specific Differences in Sex Hormones and Cytokines in Patients Undergoing Major Abdominal Surgery

Abstract

In contrast to the release of pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines, sex hormones show a gender-specific pattern during the acute phase response 1 week after abdominal surgery.

Effects of epidural anesthesia and postoperative epidural analgesia on immune function in esophageal carcinoma patients undergoing thoracic surgery

“…The present study conducted cytokine measurements over a 48-h postoperative period, providing useful initial postsurgical results; however, our knowledge of long-term effects on stress and immune response is limited. During this measurement period, the cytokine levels remained elevated, although previous results suggest a return to baseline levels within approximately 1 week after surgery (26). Our present findings may also be limited by the inability to assess the scope of epidural blockade during the operation.…”

Detection and quantitation of forty eight cytokines, chemokines, growth factors and nine acute phase proteins in healthy human plasma, saliva and urine

“…Available reports also suggest that concentrations of detected CCGFs could vary between males and females. Examples are available predominantly for disease subjects [80][81][82], limited information is available for healthy subjects [83]. Ethnicity and age difference were not considered in this work.…”

Effect of major abdominal surgery on endotoxin release and expression of Toll-like receptors 2/4

“…On cellular basis, for example, it was demonstrated that endotoxin tolerance involves the participation of macrophages and, besides others, glucocorticoids [28]; basal IL-6 levels were cyclic in normal menstrual cycle but amounts of IL-6, IL-10, and TNF after stimulation with LPS were not [29]; epinephrine and norepinephrin inhibited IL-6 and TNFα expression in a concentration-dependent manner in monocytes [30]; sex hormones show a gender-specific pattern during the acutephase response 1 week after major abdominal surgery, but ex vivo-stimulated and systemic IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, and TNFα cytokine release was not gender-specific [31]; glucocorticoids inhibited the production of IL-12, IFNγ, IFNα, and TNFα by antigen-presenting cells and T helper (Th) 1 cells, but upregulated the production of IL-4, IL-10, and IL-13 by Th2 cells, which was a systematically selective suppression of the Th1 cellular immunity axis and a shift toward Th2-mediated humoral immunity, rather than generalized immunosuppression [32]. Some publications report on systemic alterations of cytokine levels following systemic hormone application.…”