This study determined the levels of serum soluble intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (sI-CAM-1) and soluble vascular cell adhesion molecular-1 (sVCAM-1) in patients with different types of Keshan disease (KD),examined the relationship between Coxsackie B virus-specific lgM antibody (CBV-IgM) and sICAM-1 or sVCAM-1 in KD patients,and investigated the role of these adhesion molecules in the pathogenesis of KD and their clinical implications.The levels of serum slCAM-1,sVCAM-1 and CBV-IgM were measured by using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay in 22 patients with chronic Keshan disease (CKD),27 with latent Keshan disease (LKD) and 28 healthy controis.The subjects in different groups were adjusted for sex and age.Echocardiography was adopted to determine left ventrieular ejection fraction (LVEF) in 22 patients with CKD.The results showed that CKD patients had significantly higher levels of sICAM-1 and sVCAM-1 than LKD patients and healthy controls (P