Background: Data about the value of interleukin 6 and CRP in the prediction of severity of acute pancreatitis (AP) is still limited. This study is aimed at assessing the values of interleukin 6 and CRP in the prediction the severity of AP. Patients and methods: 55 patients with AP were enrolled. Interleukin was measured at 2 times: the 1st and the 3rd days. Results: IL-6 level day 1 in severe AP (168.86 ± 70.65 pg/ml) was significantly higher than in mild AP (89.54 ± 28.81 pg/ml) and IL-6 day 3 in severe AP (58.64 ± 20.77 pg/ml) significantly higher than mild AP (29.73 ± 14.88 pg/ml). concerning the prediction of severity of AP, IL-6 in day 1 (with cut-off 113.36 pg/ml) had the sensitivity 81.25% and the specificity 84.64%, PPV 68.4% and NPV 91.7%, accuracy rate 88.8%, AUC 0.888 and respectively in day 3 (with cut-off 41.38 pg/ml were 87.5%; 87.18%; 73.7%; 4.4%; 86.7%; 0.867. The values in prediction of severity were significantly higher when combining IL 6 and CRP in compare with the single marker. Conclusion: Combining Interleukin 6 and CRP may have a good value in the prediction of the severity of AP. Key words: Interleukin 6, CRP, acute pancreatitis, severity.
