Clinical conditions associated with defective polymorphonuclear leukocyte chemotaxis.

Impressive numbers of clinical conditions are associated with defective leukocyte chemotaxis. In many, this cellular dysfunction is associated with other abnormalities of the immune response, but in others abnormal chemotactic responsiveness of leukocytes is the only abnormality of function identified in the laboratory. Patients are usually selected for study because of unusually severe, recurrent infections or poor response to antimicrobial agents, and therefore a frequent association between abnormality of chemotaxis and infection would be expected. Many patients demonstrate abnormal chemotaxis during remissions as well as during infections, and there seems little doubt that abnormality of chemotaxis is related to susceptibility to infections. Partial classification of disorders of chemotaxis was attempted. Major abnormalities are found when there is a primary cellular disorder or cell-directed inhibitors of chemotaxis are found. Less marked abnormalities are found when chemotactic factors are deficient.