In vivo neutrophil delivery in men with alcoholic cirrhosis is normal despite depressed in vitro chemotaxis.

Ten patients with far-advanced Laennec's cirrhosis were studied for in vitro polymorphonuclear (PMN) chemotaxis and in vivo PMN delivery into modified skin windows. Random motility was similar for patient and control cells, but the patients' cells' mean chemotaxis to endotoxin-activated homologous serum was only 38% of control. The poor response was due to a serum inhibitor which reduced chemotactic activity of control serum by 75.6% but had no effect on chemotaxis to N-formyl-methionyl-leucyl-phenylalanine. The level of inhibitor activity in each patient did not correlate with the severity of liver dysfunction. In spite of the universal presence of the chemotactic factor inhibitor in all patients' sera, their in vivo PMN delivery into skin chambers was similar to controls. Thus, patients with alcoholic cirrhosis appear able to deliver PMNs normally in response to local tissue injury.