Our findings correlate with those of de Jong et al., who reported that the abrogation of the IL-10/STAT3 pathway restored in vitro in LPS-induced TNF-α production in human PBMC isolated from a pediatric cohort undergoing CPB-assisted surgery to correct simple congenital heart defects was independent of p38 MAPK attenuation or IκB-α degradation [35]. This evidence concerns the gene STAT3 and congenital heart disease.