[Effects of therapy, serology, stage and activity of rheumatoid arthritis on lymphocyte stimulation in whole blood].

We utilized a new, whole blood method to study the stimulation of lymphocytes by phytohemagglutinin in patients with rheumatoid arthritis and healthy volunteers. We observed that lymphocytes of patients with rheumatoid arthritis were significantly less stimulated by phytohemagglutinin than lymphocytes of controls (p less than 0.05). The underlying T-cell defect appeared to be present at all stages and activity levels of disease, and in both seropositive and seronegative patients.