Publications of Faculty of Medicine:SOLUBLE INTERCELLULAR ADHESION MOLECULE-I (sICAM-1) IN PATIENTS WITH CHRONIC LIVER DISEASE RELATED TO HEPATITIS C VIRUS: CORRELATION WITH DISEASE SEVERITY: Abstract

This study was conducted on 30 patients with chron-ic hepatitis C (CHC) and 15 age and sex matched healthy individuals as controls. The level of soluble intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (s1CAM-1) was measured using a solid phase sandwich enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (EL(SA). The level of sICAM-I in CHC patients was found to be higher than that in the control group, and the difference was, statistically significant (P < a 001). Assessment of the disease severity in the study was judged using Child Turcotte classification. According to this classification the CHC patients were classified into 3 classes, Child class A (mild form), child class B. and child class C (severe form). The level of sICAM-I in Child class C or Child class B was significantly higher than that of Child class A (P < a 001). Also the level of sICAM-I in Child class C was statistically higher than that of Child class B (P < 0.001). The study also revealed a positive correlation between level of sICAM-I and each of ALT ('r=0.84651, P < a a 77344, P < 0.001) and total bilrub0in0 1(r), =A SaT 7 (8r4=608.,8 P35 <35 a, P 0 0<1 )a. A 0l0s1o) a, ;nCeTg a(tri v=e correlation was found between level of sICAM-I and serum Albumin (r = -a 88448, P < 0.001) and between level of sICAM-I and prothrombin concentration (r = -a 89159, P < a 001). So it can be concluded that the level of sICAM-1 in CHC patients is statistically higher than that of healthy controls, and can be used as a non invasive marker of disease severity.