Plasma Interleukin‐10 Levels and IL10 Genetic Variants Are Associated With Clinical Outcomes in Patients With Severe COVID‐19 Treated With Corticosteroids

ABSTRACT We aimed to evaluate the association between IL10 variants and plasma IL‐10 levels and clinical outcomes in patients with severe COVID‐19 treated with corticosteroids. We studied 944 patients with severe COVID‐19 who were treated with corticosteroids. The clinical outcomes evaluated were in‐hospital mortality and the requirement of invasive mechanical ventilation (IMV). The variants IL10 rs1800872, rs1554286, rs3024505, and rs3122605 were determined using TaqMan SNP assays, and IL‐10 levels were measured by ELISA at the start of corticosteroid treatment (T1) and after 8 days (T2). The rs1800872‐TT ( p = 0.035, OR = 1.55, 95% CI = 1.03–2.33) and the rs1554286‐AA genotypes were associated with IMV ( p adj = 0.036, OR = 2.42, 95% CI = 1.12–5.95). IL‐10 levels were higher at T1 than at T2. At T2, IL‐10 levels were higher in non‐survivors (15.9 vs. 7.0 pg/mL, p < 0.001) and in patients requiring IMV (9.9 vs. 5.5 pg/mL, p < 0.001). Among non‐survivors, IL‐10 plasma levels did not decrease at T2. The alluvial plot revealed that 51.9% of patients in the highest IL‐10 tertile at T1 remained in the highest tertile at T2, with a mortality rate of 50%. IL10 rs1800872 and rs1554286 contribute to the risk of requiring IMV. Elevated IL‐10 levels after corticosteroid treatment were linked to in‐hospital mortality and IMV.