[Antigenic composition of immune complexes in the blood and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid of patients with tuberculosis and aspecific inflammatory diseases of the respiratory organs].

The level and antigenic composition of immune complexes (ICs) in 49 patients with nonspecific inflammatory diseases of the respiratory organs (NIDRO) and tuberculosis were studied in relation to separate indices of systemic and local immunity. Involvement of the ICs in the pathogenesis of tuberculosis and NIDRO was shown and the role of the level and composition of the ICs in the prognosis and differential diagnosis of the indicated pathological processes was revealed. It was noted that in patients with active tuberculosis and in patients with chronic bronchitis and residual lesions after cured tuberculosis of the respiratory organs the ICs mainly formed by antigenic substances of tubercle bacilli. In the patients with chronic bronchitis and suppurative affections of the lungs the ICs formed due to antigenic substances of bacterial infections. The use of a technique for simultaneous cleavage of the ICs in blood and bronchoalveolar secretion provided determination of etiology of the inflammatory processes in the lungs and bronchi. The technique proved to be highly efficient for early differential diagnosis of tuberculosis and NIDRO.