Synovial fluid lymphocyte proliferation in response to crude microbial antigens is not useful as a diagnostic test to specifically indicate a bacterial cause of arthritis.
OBJECTIVE
To determine the role of lymphocyte proliferation assay of synovial fluid mononuclear cells (SFMC) with whole fraction bacteria in the diagnosis of reactive arthritis (ReA) or arthritis of unknown origin.


METHODS
We stimulated SFMC of 52 unselected patients who consecutively presented in our rheumatology outpatient clinic with the following diagnoses: ReA (n = 8), rheumatoid arthritis (RA) (n = 16), ankylosing spondylitis (AS) (n = 6), osteoarthritis (OA) (n = 5), psoriatic arthritis (PsA) (n = 5) and arthritis of varying origin (AVO) (n = 12) and peripheral blood MC (PBMC) of 10 healthy controls with arthritogenic (Y. entero-colitica, S. enteritidis, C. trachomatis) and non-arthritogenic (E. coli, K. pneumoniae, S. pyogenes, C. albicans) bacteria/mitogens and Tetanus toxoid. T cell proliferation was measured in a standard [3H] Thymidine uptake assay.


RESULTS
In all groups of patients tested, SFMC could be stimulated both by arthritogenic and non-arthritogenic bacteria. So-called specific responses were observed in patients with ReA, but also in RA and AS.


CONCLUSIONS
Our findings show that a lymphocyte proliferation assay with SFMC with whole fraction bacteria is not an adequate diagnostic tool to confirm bacterial involvement in inflammatory arthritis.
Kaluza
W
W
First Department of Medicine, Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz, Germany.
Meyer zum Büschenfelde
K H
KH
Galle
P R
PR
Märker-Hermann
E
E
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000818:Animals; D000942:Antigens, Bacterial / Q000502:physiology*; D001168:Arthritis / Q000175:diagnosis; D001170:Arthritis, Infectious / Q000175:diagnosis*; D015535:Arthritis, Psoriatic / Q000175:diagnosis; D001172:Arthritis, Rheumatoid / Q000175:diagnosis; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D006168:Guinea Pigs; D006801:Humans; D008213:Lymphocyte Activation; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009000:Monocytes / Q000187:drug effects / Q000473:pathology / Q000502:physiology; D010003:Osteoarthritis / Q000175:diagnosis; D000091402:Prohibitins; D012016:Reference Values; D013582:Synovial Fluid / Q000166:cytology*; D013745:Tetanus Toxoid / Q000494:pharmacology
D000942:Antigens, Bacterial; C000717331:PHB2 protein, human; D000091402:Prohibitins; D013745:Tetanus Toxoid