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Smear-negative pulmonary tuberculosis and lymphocyte subsets.
Shah Muhammad Khan Jadoon1, Shaheen Moin, Tahir Aziz Ahmed
1Department of Medicine, The School of Infantry and Tactics, Quetta, Pakistan. drsmkjadoon@yahoo.com
Summary
Low hemoglobin and lymphocyte counts, along with high neutrophils, indicate disease severity in smear-negative pulmonary tuberculosis. Activated T cells may serve as a prognostic indicator.
Area of Science:
- Immunology
- Infectious Diseases
- Clinical Medicine
Background:
- Pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) diagnosis can be challenging, especially in smear-negative cases.
- Understanding immune responses, specifically lymphocyte subsets, is crucial for assessing TB severity and prognosis.
Purpose of the Study:
- To correlate and quantify lymphocyte subsets with clinically diagnosed smear-negative pulmonary tuberculosis.
- To assess the relationship between lymphocyte subsets and disease severity in these patients.
Main Methods:
- A case-control study involving 15 smear-negative pulmonary tuberculosis patients.
- Analysis of lymphocyte subsets using monoclonal antibodies against specific CD markers.
- Statistical analysis performed using student t-test or Mann-Whitney rank-sum test.
Main Results:
- Significantly reduced hemoglobin and total lymphocyte counts were observed.
- Increased total leukocyte counts and absolute neutrophil counts were noted.
- Reduced fractions of CD4+ and CD8+ T lymphocytes expressing HLA-DR were found.
Conclusions:
- Low hemoglobin, high neutrophils, and low lymphocytes correlate with TB disease extent.
- Activated CD4+, CD8+, ab, and gd TCR T cells tend to increase during Mycobacterium infection.
- These activated T cells show potential as non-invasive prognostic indicators for pulmonary tuberculosis.