மருத்துவ மற்றும் பரிசோதனை மருந்தியல் இதழ்

சுருக்கம்

Life Style Factors Influencing Immunotoxic Effects Detected on Peripherial Blood Lymphocytes of Health Personnel Exposed to Anesthetic Gas

Anna Biro and Anna Tompa

In this study, changes in the immune phenotype of 127 subjects exposed to anesthetic gases from health services were measured by flow cytometry. The data was compared to healthy, non-exposed controls. We supposed that there is a relationship between health risk for the personnel exposed to anesthetic gases and the alteration of the measured immune parameters in the presence or absence of confounding factors such as smoking and alcohol consumption.In the group of health personnel exposed to anesthetic gases, we found a statistically significant increase in the ratio of CD25+/CD8+ cells - activated cytotoxic T cells - compared to the control. In those workplaces, where protective measures were strictly adhered to (with quality assurance) the activation of lymphocytes was at control level, however, where there was no quality assurance, activation of lymphocytes increased significantly compared to the control. In the anesthetic gas exposed smokers, there was a statistically significant shift in the T cell subpopulations: the percentage of helper T cells increased, while the percentage of cytotoxic T cell decreased, leading to an elevated Th/Tc ratio compared to the nonsmokers. Our results suggest that our biomarkers can be useful in tracking occupational/environmental immunotoxic effects. Smoking as a confounding factor has to be taken into account when assessing occupational exposures.