Malnutrition induces dissociated changes in lymphocyte count and subset proportion in patients with anorexia nervosa.
OBJECTIVE
The effect of nutritional state on lymphocytes in patients with anorexia nervosa (AN) was studied.


METHODS
We studied total lymphocyte count (TLC), lymphocyte subsets, and nutritional markers [body mass index (BMI), insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-I)], and serum zinc concentration) in 33 patients with AN and 10 healthy controls.


RESULTS
TLC positively correlated with BMI (r = .680, p < .001), IGF-I (r = .609 p < .001), and zinc (r = .589, p < .001). The CD4+ T-lymphocyte (CD4) proportion correlated negatively with BMI (r = -.301, p = .05) and IGF-I (r = -.346, p = .023), counteracting the effect of malnutrition on TLC. However, because this increase in CD4 proportion was weak, patients with very severe malnutrition (indicated by serum zinc less than 40 microg/dL) had critically low CD4 counts of less than 200 cells/microL.


CONCLUSIONS
Our findings suggest that lymphocyte counts and subset proportion change in an opposite manner in patients with AN, and that decrease in serum zinc levels is nutrition-related.
Saito
Hiroshi
H
Department of Medicine, Institute of Clinical Endocrinology, Tokyo Women's Medical University, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo, Japan. hiroshisa@endm.twmu.ac.jp
Nomura
Kaoru
K
Hotta
Mari
M
Takano
Kazue
K
D000328:Adult; D000856:Anorexia Nervosa / Q000097:blood* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D015703:Antigens, CD / Q000097:blood; D015992:Body Mass Index; D004213:Dissociative Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D018655:Lymphocyte Count; D016131:Lymphocyte Subsets; D044342:Malnutrition / Q000097:blood* / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology; D015032:Zinc / Q000097:blood
D015703:Antigens, CD; D015032:Zinc