Leukocytes and the inflammatory response in ischemia-reperfusion injury.

The events of ischemia-reperfusion injury triggers a systemic inflammatory response and can lead to cellular injury and organ failure. Such effects are noted in the postoperative recovery, especially with the use of cardiopulmonary bypass. Nowadays, it is known that leukocytes play an important role in this process. Therefore, this study addresses the role of leukocytes in the physiopathology of ischemia-reperfusion injuries and activation of inflammatory cascades through this process and seek to help in the understanding of these mechanisms as well as to bring contributions on the therapeutic approaches that can mitigate them. This retrospective review was performed from indexed scientific papers published over the last ten years in Portuguese and English in international databases MEDLINE and SciELO and related classic texts. The descriptors investigated were: ischemia-reperfusion, leukocytes, inflammatory response, cardiopulmonary bypass, adverse effects and apoptosis.