Summary
We investigated the state of humoral and cellular immunity of 16 patients (eight women, eight men, aged 16 to 80 years), who had suffered from extraintestinal manifestations of infections with enteritis salmonellae. Four patients were examined during the acute state of the disease, the others one to three years thereafter. These patients were in good clinical condition. In all cases we could exclude an antibody deficiency syndrome. In the peripheral blood of 11 patients, we found a diminished number of T-helper lymphocytes, mostly together with a decrease in total T lymphocytes. Because the microbicidal activity of macrophages may be impaired by a general or localized decrease in T-helper cells, we suggest that the phagocytized enteritis salmonellae survive in this way and cause the atypical course of the infection in these patients.
Zusammenfassung
Wir untersuchten den humoralen und zellulären Immunstatus von 16 Patienten (8 Frauen, 8 Männer; Alter: 16 bis 80 Jahre), die an einer extraintestinal lokalisierten Infektion mit Enteritis-Salmonellen erkrankt waren. Vier Patienten wurden während der akuten Erkrankung untersucht, die restlichen ein bis drei Jahre danach. Diese Patienten waren in guter klinischer Verfassung. Wir konnten in allen Fällen ein Antikörpermangelsyndrom ausschließen. Im peripheren Blut von elf Patienten fanden wir eine erniedrigte Zahl von T-Helfer-Lymphozyten meist in Verbindung mit einer Verminderung der Gesamt-T-Lymphozyten. Da die bakterizide Aktivität von Makrophagen durch eine generelle oder lokalisierte Verminderung der T-Helfer-Zellen beeinträchtigt sein kann, vermuten wir, daß die phagozytierten Enteritis-Salmonellen auf diese Weise überleben und den atypischen Verlauf der Infektion bei diesen Patienten verursachen.
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Barnert, J., Behr, W. Immunologic findings in patients with an atypical course of an infection with non-typhoid salmonellae. Infection 15, 447–449 (1987). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01647230
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01647230