[Serum lactate-dehydrogenase isoenzymes in HIV positive children. A longitudinal study]

The impairment of humoral immunity with rapid turn-over of cellular B clones in children with HIV infection is known as well as the conduct of LDH isoenzymes in B cell lymphoproliferative diseases like Burkitt's lymphoma. Therefore, serum lactate-dehydrogenase activity (LD, EC 1.1.1.27) and its isoenzymes have been evaluated twice (within 12 months) in 11 children with HIV infection with respect to a control group (30 subjects). Furthermore, the relationship between those and other clinical and immunologic parameters (total lymphocytes, CD4/CD8, immunoglobulins, classification according to the Atlanta CDC 1987) has been studied. HIV infected children have shown a significant decrease in LD1 rates, which was directly correlated to CD4/CD8 values. After the follow-up, this correlation became even more significant. Thus, these findings may suggest the usefulness of LDH isoenzymes evaluation as a marker of disease activity in children with HIV infection.