[The clinical significance of changes in CD4+ T cell counts by peripheral blood from patients with pulmonary tuberculosis after antitubercular treatment].
OBJECTIVE
To explore the clinical significance of changes in CD4+ T cell counts by peripheral blood from patients with pulmonary tuberculosis after antitubercular treatment.


METHODS
CD4+ T cell counts in the peripheral blood of 62 pulmonary TB patients were counted by flow cytometry from groups auording to the radiologic extent of disease, and compared with those obtained from 30 controls.


RESULTS
(1) The baseline levels of CD4+ T cell counts (439.21+/-210.56)/mm3 in pulmonary tuberculosis group before antituberculosis therapy were significantly lower than those (748.47+/-261.85)/mm3 in the control group (P<0.01). (2) The baseline levels of CD4+ T cell counts (399.83+/-194.17)/mm3 before antituberculosis therapy in diffuse group were significantly lower than those (521.90+/-224.40)/mm3 in limited group (P<0.05). (3) After two months of antituberculosis therapy, the levels of CD4+ T cell counts in the improved group increased from (480.75+/-228.49)/mm3 to (616.75+/-280.57)/mm3, and the values were not significantly different from those in controls (P>0.05). Whereas, the levels of CD4+ T cell counts in the stable group increased from (412.97+/-197.00)/mm3 to (447.55+/-204.60)/mm3, which were still significantly lower than those in the control group (P<0.01).


CONCLUSIONS
These results suggested that peripheral CD4+ lymphopenia was demonstrated in patients with pulmonary tuberculosis, and such lymphopenia was reversible partly with antitubercular treatment. The numbers of peripheral CD4+ T cell counts were related to the severity of the disease, the more severe of the disease was, the less numbers of the CD4+ T cell counts were.
Li
De-xian
DX
Guangzhou Chest Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510095, China.
Zhang
Tian-tuo
TT
Tan
Shou-yong
SY
Xiao
Peng
P
Tan
Yao-ju
YJ
Zhang
Xian-lan
XL
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000995:Antitubercular Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D018791:CD4 Lymphocyte Count; D015496:CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes / Q000187:drug effects / Q000276:immunology*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D014397:Tuberculosis, Pulmonary / Q000097:blood / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000276:immunology*; D055815:Young Adult
D000995:Antitubercular Agents