Morphometric analysis of peripheral blood and synovial fluid lymphocytes of patients with rheumatic disease

A morphometric analysis of lymphocytes from the peripheral blood and the synovial fluid (SF) of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) was based on a determination of the nuclear contour index (NCI = perimeter divided by the square root of the area of the nucleus). Use of this method showed that a particular type of lymphocyte, the cerebriform mononuclear cell (CMC), occurred in higher percentages in the SF than in the peripheral blood of patients with RA. The mean NCI of the lymphocytes (non-CMC) was also higher in the SF. These findings indicate that lymphocytes in the inflammatory compartment are morphologically altered, compared to the corresponding cells in the peripheral blood of the same patients, the change probably expressing an alteration in functional status.