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Background: Augmentation Index (AIx) is considered a sensitive marker of arterial stiffness in young individuals. Increased levels of inflammatory markers such as interleukin-6 (IL-6) are associated with increased levels of arterial stiffness in older and diseased populations. However, little is known about these associations in young healthy individuals, as concentrations are prone to fluctuation. Data suggests that increased levels of the soluble IL-6 receptor (sIL-6R) facilitate the detrimental pro-inflammatory signalling of IL-6, which may highlight sIL-6R’s role as a mediator of chronic inflammation and associated disease states. Therefore, the aim of the study was to determine the associations between sIL-6R and IL-6 with AIx in a young healthy cohort. Methods: In 20 healthy male subjects (age 22±3 years), self-reported physical activity levels (PA) were determined via International Physical Activity Questionnaire. Peripheral and central blood pressure and AIx@75 were measured using the Mobil-O-Graph system (IEM). Plasma concentrations of sIL-6R and IL-6 were assessed via enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (RnD systems). Results: AIx@75 was significantly associated with levels of sIL-6R (r=0.5, P=0.02) but not associated with levels of IL-6 or PA (P>0.05). Conclusion: These novel pilot data suggest that elevated concentrations of sIL-6R at an early age may be indicative of an underlying vulnerability to inflammation-associated vascular stiffening. Furthermore, the absence of any association between IL-6 and AIx in our study implies that sIL-6R may be a more suitable biomarker than IL-6 for use in understanding the mechanisms by which inflammation affects vascular stiffening. However, larger studies are required to confirm our findings.