Quantitation of cytokine levels in skin graft donor site wound fluid

We quantified endogenous levels of multiple cytokines in skin graft donor site wounds in patients with small to moderate-sixed burn injuries. Thirteen patients aged 11 months to 61 years with mean TBSA burn of 4 ± 1 per cent underwent placement of occlusive wound dressings on partial skin thickness donor site wounds. Fluid was aspirated from beneath the dressing on postoperative day 1 and every subsequent 24 h until no further fluid could be obtained. Interleukin-1 alpha (IL-1) and tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) levels were determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Epidermal growth factor (EGF), basic-fibroblast growth factor (bFGF), and platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) were measured by an enzyme immunoassay (EIA). We found substantial levels of EGF and TNF-alpha in the donor site wound fluid in all 13 patients; detectable levels of bFGF in five patients; and elevated levels of IL-1 in three patients. There were no detectable levels of these cytokines in normal human serum. In contrast, there were no measurable levels of PDGF in any patient's wound fluid; the mean level in serum was 1.5 ng/ml ± 0.2 s.e.m. Studies of cytokines in the normal wound healing environment may help in the design of future therapies to augment wound healing.