An unopposed proinflammatory response is beneficial for survival in the oldest old. Results of the Leiden 85-plus study

Abstract

The capacity to generate an efficient innate immune response is pivotal for survival. The objective of this study was to investigate innate immune function in relation to long-term survival in the oldest old. We measured ex vivo lipopolysaccharide-induced proinflammatory and antiinflammatory cytokine responses in 562 participants aged 85 years of the general population who were followed for mortality during 10 years. Compared with participants with a high proinflammatory and antiinflammatory response profile, 85 year olds with an overall low proinflammatory and antiinflammatory response had a significant higher mortality risk (hazard ratio: 1.79, 95% confidence interval: 1.29-2.50), whereas ..