title: The effect of surgical excision and grafting procedures on postburn lymphocyte suppression.
abstract: Previous reports have stressed the immunosuppressive effects of major surgical procedures. In this study, 30 adult patients with a mean burn size of 42.8% TBSA and a mean age of 31.9 years underwent 78 surgical excision and grafting (E/G) procedures. The mean surface area excised was 2,373 cm2, with a mean blood transfusion requirement per E/G of 3,355 cc or 1.4 cc/cm2. The suppressive effect of burn serum was assayed in mixed lymphocyte cultures. Before E/G, burn serum caused a mean 42.2 +/- 3.3% suppression of normal lymphocyte blastogenesis; serum suppressive activity following E/G was reduced to 29.1 +/- 2.9% (p less than 0.005). The mean duration of improvement in lymphocyte function was 5.0 days. E/G procedures which achieved complete burn wound closure were more effective in restoring lymphocyte immunocompetence. E/G has a significant beneficial effect on restoring lymphocyte responsiveness in burn patients. Preliminary evidence suggests that this effect is related to blood transfusions.
authors.forename: R J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Stratta
authors.forename: J R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Saffle
authors.forename: J L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Ninnemann
authors.forename: M E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Weber
authors.forename: J J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Sullivan
authors.forename: G D
authors.initials: GD
authors.lastname: Warden
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001803:Blood Transfusion; D002056:Burns / Q000276:immunology* / Q000601:surgery; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007108:Immune Tolerance; D007959:Lymphocyte Culture Test, Mixed; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D013524:Surgical Flaps; D050378:T-Lymphocytes, Regulatory / Q000276:immunology*; D013997:Time Factors