TNF and hemolytic-uremic syndrome: Increased levels of IL-6 and TNF-α and higher numbers of white and red blood cells have been found in stools of 12- to 60-month-old Bangladeshi children with uncomplicated shigellosis (i.e., absence of hemolytic uremic syndrome and/or leukocytosis) in comparison to those with complicated disease, suggesting a protective role of these inflammatory mediators in preventing further bacterial spread and tissue damage (15).