Inflammatory cytokines affecting cardiovascular function: a scoping review

Abstract

Background: A chronic inflammatory process can cause disorders on the cardiovascular system. It is caused by an enhancement of inflammatory cytokines that can decrease the heart working-function. This article aims to review inflammatory cytokines that can cause the cardiovascular system disease. Methods: The review process began by taking articles from two databases, namely PubMed and SpringerLink without using the publication year limit. The reviewed article was a research article using human samples, which analyzed the impact of inflammatory cytokines on cardiovascular disease or the risk level of cardiovascular disease. Result: From a total of 3926 articles originating from two databases, 21 obtained articles have matched with the inclusion criteria for the review process. Of those 21 articles, 17 reported an increased effect of inflammatory cytokines on cardiovascular disease, while four articles showed no association between increased inflammatory cytokines and cardiovascular disease. There were six inflammatory cytokines that could affect cardiovascular disease, namely: TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-2, IL-6, IL-8, and IL-17 where cytokine IL-6 is confirmed by as many as 14 articles, TNF-α as many as six articles, and IL-1 β as many as three articles as inflammatory cytokines that could affect cardiovascular function. Conclusion: The increased level of inflammatory cytokines can be a trigger for decreased function and cause the disease in the cardiovascular system.