Abstract:Objective To investigate the levels of interleukin 34 (IL-34) in serum and aqueous humor of patients with age-related cataract and their relationship with inflammatory factors. Methods Totally 150 cases (150 eyes) of age-related cataract treated were selected as the observation group from January 2018 to December 2018 in the China People’s Liberation Army Xinjiang Military Region General Hospital All Army Eye Center, and 150 patients with ocular trauma were selected as the control group during the same period. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was used to determine the levels of serum and aqueous humor IL-34, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs- PCR), IL-1β, IL-6 and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α). Results The serum levels of IL-34, hs-PCR, IL-1β, IL-6 and TNF-α in the observation group were higher than those in the control group (P < 0.05). The levels of IL-34, hs- PCR, IL-1β, IL-6 and TNF-α in the aqueous humor of the observation group were higher than those of the control group (P < 0.05). There was positive correlation between serum IL-34 level and the levels of hs-PCR, IL-1β, IL-6 and TNF-α in the observation group (r = 0.512, 0.564, 0.531 and 0.524, all P = 0.000). The level of IL-34 in the aqueous humor of the observation group were positively correlated with the levels of hs-PCR, IL-1β, IL-6 and TNF-α (r = 0.557, 0.603, 0.581 and 0.532, all P = 0.000). Conclusion The serum and aqueous humor IL-34 levels of patients with age-related cataract are elevated, which may be involved in the pathogenesis of the disease through interaction with other pro-inflammatory factors.