ABSTRACT
Objective:
To analyze the changes in
T lymphocyte subsets,
B lymphocytes and
NK cells in
children with active
tuberculosis (TB) and their
clinical significance.
Methods:
T lymphocyte subsets,
B lymphocytes and
NK cells in peripheral
blood samples of 106
patients with acute TB (TB group) and 106 healthy
children (healthy
control group) were detected by
flow cytometry and compared between different groups.
Results:
The percentages of CD3 + T, CD4 + T and
NK cells as well as the CD4 +/CD8 +
T cell ratio were significantly lower in the TB group than in the healthy
control group ( Z=-3.783, P=0.000; Z=-5.401, P=0.000; Z=-3.434, P=0.001; Z=-2.014, P=0.044). The percentages of double negative T (DNT) and B
cells in the TB group were significantly higher than those in the healthy
control group ( Z=2.765, P=0.006; Z=6.880, P=0.000). No significant difference in the percentage of CD8 + T or double positive T (DPT)
cells was observed between the two groups ( P>0.05). The expression of peripheral
lymphocyte subsets varied in TB
children of different
age groups (0-<3, 3-<6, 6-<10 and 10-<16 years old). There were significant differences in CD3 + T, DNT and B
cells among the four
age groups ( H=10.081, P=0.018; H=14.583, P=0.002; H=8.498, P=0.037). The percentage of CD4 +
T cells was significantly lower in
children with extrapulmonary TB than in those with pulmonary TB ( Z=-3.068, P=0.002). No statistically significant difference in other
lymphocyte subsets was found between
children with extrapulmonary and pulmonary TB ( P>0.05).
Conclusions:
Tuberculosis could
lead to immune dysfunction in
children. Dynamic
monitoring of the changes in peripheral
lymphocyte subsets in
children with TB could be conducive to better assessment of immune status and providing personalized
treatment.