Effect of the Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor (VEGF) on Liver Dysfunction in the Acute Phase of Kawasaki Disease

Kawasaki disease (KD) is an acute type of systemic vasculitis characterized by a remarkable activation of the inflammatory response. Most KD patieents were complicated with the liver dysfunction in the acute phase. To investigate the pathogenesis of the l iver dysfunction, we measured the serum levels of inflammatory cytokines including interleukin (IL)-6, interferon-γ, tumor necrosis factor-α, transforming growth factor-β, IL-10, or vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), which were re lated with the pathogenesis of the vasculitis, and the serum levels of albumin and C-reactive protein (CRP) as the indicator of the acute inflammatory response in 35 KD patients. The nineteen of 35 KD patients (54.3%) suffered liver dysfunction (AST50 IU). Neither albumin nor CRP were significantly elevated in the serum of patients with liver dysfunction compared with those without liver dysfunction. Of the measured cytokines, only VEGF was significantly elevated in the patients with liver dysfuncti on compared with patients without liver dysfunction (p<0.05). We presume that this high level of serum VEGF was caused with the thrombocytosis of KD disease. These results suggest that the liver dysfunction in the acute phase of KD was induced via end o thelial cells activated by VEGF.