IL6 and acute respiratory distress syndrome: Neutrophil extracellular trap (NET) formation is observed in the small pulmonary vessels of patients who succumb to severe ARDS,5 and the release of NETs is the primary function of neutrophils.6 The levels of inflammatory cytokines, such as interleukin-6 and interleukin-8, which induce NETosis, are increased in patients with severe ARDS.7,8 NETs are extracellular decondensed chromatin molecules decorated with histones and antimicrobial proteins that physically trap and kill microbes.