Admission levels of soluble CD137 are increased in patients with acute pancreatitis and are associated with subsequent complications.

The progression of acute pancreatitis to necrotizing pancreatitis which often results in high morbidity and mortality is difficult to predict. Here we report that serum concentrations of sCD137 are increased in patients with acute pancreatitis. Admission levels and 10-day median sCD137 levels positively correlate with markers of biliary pancreatitis and the 10-day sCD137 median is significantly higher in metabolic than in alcoholic pancreatitis. Serum concentrations of sCD137 at time of admission and the 10-day median of sCD137 correlate with the Ranson and APACHE II disease scores but not with the radiological Balthazar and Schroeder scores that reflect pancreatic and peripancreatic necrosis. Further, sCD137 levels correlate with the probability of complications and lethality. The association of sCD137, a product of activated T cells, with the severity of acute pancreatitis suggests that T cells contribute to the pathogenesis of acute pancreatitis.