Influence of focal infection on the immune status of psoriasis patients

Abstract

Objective: to study the influence of focal infection on the immune status of patients with psoriasis.Materials and methods. 30 patients with psoriasis aged 19 to 61 years (21 people — plaque psoriasis, 9 people — psoriasis guttata) were examined, which were divided into 2 groups. The first group — with the diagnosed of focal infection (18 people), the second group — without the presence of focal infection (12 people). The control group consisted of 15 healthy individuals admitted to the clinic for the removal of benign skin tumors. All patients underwent a comprehensive clinical, instrumental and laboratory examination, as well as an immunogram. Determination of lymphocyte subpopulations was carried out on a flow cytometer “Cytom - ics FC500” by Beckman Coulter using various combinations of direct monoclonal antibodies and isotopic controls. The groups were compared using nonparametric Mann — Whitney test, the differences were considered significant at p < 0.05.Results. The absence of significant quantitative changes in the main and small subpopulations of T- and В-lymphocytes in both groups of patients with psoriasis was shown. At the same time, the group of patients with psoriasis and focal infection, was characterized by an increase in the relative number of T-lymphocytes (p = 0.034) and T-helpers (p = 0.012), the relative and absolute number of activated CD3+HLA-DR+cells (p = 0.028 and 0.036, respectively), as well as a decrease in regulatory T-helper (p = 0.031). Subpopulation of CLA+CD3+-lymphocytes tropic to the skin in comparison with control was increased both in the first (p = 0.016) and second (p = 0.044) groups. Also, patients with psoriasis differed from healthy individuals by increasing the number of memory T-cells (p = 0.049 for group 1, p = 0.003 for group 2).Conclusion. Existing focal infection in psoriasis patients lead to an imbalance in the content of individual lymphocyte subpopulations: an increase in the relative number of CD3+CD4+ and CD3+HLA-DR+ cells, as well as a decrease in regulatory T-helper. These changes can lead to a long course of the disease and a reduction in remission periods.