title: Effect of splenectomy on T lymphocyte subsets in patients infected with the human immunodeficiency virus.
abstract: A case-control study was conducted at two institutions to determine whether the absolute CD4 lymphocyte count or the percentage of lymphocytes bearing the CD4 marker (i.e., the CD4 percentage) is a more accurate indicator of underlying immune status in splenectomized patients infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Each of nine splenectomized HIV-infected cases was matched with six nonsplenectomized HIV-infected controls--three matched for CD4 lymphocyte count and three for CD4 percentage. In analyses including the eight cases with an initial CD4 lymphocyte count of > 200/mm3, controlling for the CD4 count revealed differences between cases and controls in terms of CD4 percentage (range, 10%-41% and 17%-54%, respectively; P < .01) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) clinical stage (P = .06). Controlling for the CD4 percentage revealed a significant difference between cases and controls in terms of CD4 count (range, 396-1,040 and 55-784 cells/mm3, respectively; P < .01) but not CDC clinical stage (P > .7). These data suggest that the numerical relationship between the CD4 lymphocyte count and the CD4 percentage among splenectomized HIV-infected patients with more than 200 CD4 cells/mm3 differs from that among nonsplenectomized patients. The CD4 percentage appears to be a more accurate indicator of the underlying level of immune function in the former group of patients.
authors.affiliation: Division of Infectious Diseases, Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, Hershey, Pennsylvania 17033, USA.
authors.forename: J J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Zurlo
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Wood
authors.forename: M M
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Gaglione
authors.forename: M A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Polis
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D018791:CD4 Lymphocyte Count; D015496:CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D013156:Splenectomy; D016176:T-Lymphocyte Subsets