{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,3]],"date-time":"2026-07-03T15:10:39Z","timestamp":1783091439774,"version":"3.54.6"},"reference-count":28,"publisher":"Public Library of Science (PLoS)","issue":"8","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,8,22]],"date-time":"2025-08-22T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1755820800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"Ratchadapiseksompotch Fund, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand","award":["GA64\/023"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["GA64\/023"]}]},{"name":"Ratchadapisek Somphot Endowment Fund, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand","award":["90_49_2_64_006"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["90_49_2_64_006"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":["www.plosone.org"],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["PLoS One"],"abstract":"<jats:sec id=\"sec001\">\n<jats:title>Introduction<\/jats:title>\n<jats:p>This study evaluated serum inflammatory cytokine levels before and after transforaminal epidural steroid injections (TFESI) to assess their potential as biomarkers for predicting favorable outcomes in patients with lumbosacral radiculopathy.<\/jats:p>\n<\/jats:sec>\n<jats:sec id=\"sec002\">\n<jats:title>Methods<\/jats:title>\n<jats:p>All 120 eligible patients diagnosed with lumbosacral radiculopathy underwent blood collection 1) before TFESI and 2) two weeks after the procedure. A 5.0\u2009mg dexamethasone mixture with local anesthetics was injected at each epidural level. This study defined a favorable response as a pain reduction of more than 50% at the 2-week follow-up. Serum inflammatory cytokines between good and poor responders were analyzed. Data collection included pain characteristics, clinical presentations, and radiographic findings.<\/jats:p>\n<\/jats:sec>\n<jats:sec id=\"sec003\">\n<jats:title>Results<\/jats:title>\n<jats:p>Positive responses were observed in 73 out of 120 patients (60.8%). Patients with favorable responses demonstrated a significant reduction in serum IFN-\u03b3, IL-1\u03b2, IL-6, and GM-CSF concentration at 2 weeks after TFESI compared to their baseline levels. However, mean differences in serum inflammatory cytokines post-TFESI showed no significant variation between two groups. The duration of pain symptoms was associated with increased levels of IFN-\u03b3 and decreased levels of MMP7. The increased serum IL-6, GDF-15, and GM-CSF exhibited a significant correlation with clinical presentations. The higher level of serum IFN-\u03b3 significantly correlated with the severity of HNP (r\u2009=\u20090.436, P\u2009=\u20090.039) while the elevated serum concentration of MMP7 exhibited a significant correlation with the presence of foraminal stenosis (r\u2009=\u20090.436, P\u2009=\u20090.045).<\/jats:p>\n<\/jats:sec>\n<jats:sec id=\"sec004\">\n<jats:title>Conclusion<\/jats:title>\n<jats:p>The decrease in serum IFN-\u03b3, IL-1\u03b2, IL-6, and GM-CSF levels post-TFESI was a promising biomarker for a favorable response in patients with lumbosacral radiculopathy.<\/jats:p>\n<\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pone.0329552","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,8,22]],"date-time":"2025-08-22T17:23:14Z","timestamp":1755883394000},"page":"e0329552","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1371\/journal.pone.corrections_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":2,"title":["A reduction in serum IFN-\u03b3, IL-1\u03b2, IL-6, and GM-CSF serves as potential markers 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