[Phagocytosis and chemiluminescence of neutrophils in patients with pulmonary tuberculosis].

The study included 22 patients (15 males and 7 females) with tuberculosis (infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis), aged from 14 to 70 years. Taking into account clinical status and inflammatory state indices (ESR, leucocytosis, neutrophil count) the following groups were identified: group I--all patients with tuberculosis (n = 22), with subgroup 1--patients with tuberculosis in serious condition (n = 13), subgroup 2--patients with tuberculosis in moderately serious condition (n = 9). The control group (group II) consisted of 16 healthy volunteers aged from 22 to 52 years (12 women and 4 men). In all patients the following parameters were measured: chemiluminescence (CLmax and CLarea) and phagocytosis of neutrophils (total phagocytic capacity (TPC), phagocytic index (PI), percent of phagocyting neutrophils %phag.), ESR, leukocyte count, neutrophil differential count in blood smear. No difference in CL was shown between patients with tuberculosis and healthy people. Significantly higher TPC values were observed in patients with tuberculosis (group I, subgroups 1 and 2) than in the control group. TPC was highest in subgroup 1. PI was slightly higher in patients with tuberculosis than in the control group. On the contrary, decreased %phag was observed in group I (both subgroups). ESR, total leukocyte count and differential neutrophil count were statistically significantly higher in group I than in group II. In patients from group I, together with a slight increase of CLmax, an elevation of TPC was observed. This dependence was not observed between CLarea and TPC. There was no dependence between CLmax and PI. Together with ESR increase, an increase of phagocytic properties of neutrophils was observed.