Haematological Abnormalities in Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) Disease
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
J Clin Pathol: first published as 10.1136/jcp.41.7.711 on 1 July 1988. Downloaded from J Clin Pathol 1988;41:711-715 Review article Haematological abnormalities in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) disease CHRISTINE COSTELLO From the Department ofHaematology, St Stephen's Hospital, London Peripheral blood and bone marrow changes are com- patients with AIDS and opportunistic tumours.2 Care monly seen in disease associated with human immun- must be taken when interpreting the ratio of T helper odeficiency virus (HIV). This annotation aims to to T suppressor cells. Only when there is lymphopenia summarise these changes and to suggest possible does a decreased ratio indicate depletion of T helper factors entailed in their occurrence. cells. In patients with a normal lymphocyte count a decreased ratio might result either from T helper cell The wideranging clinical and pathological changes in depletion or from T suppressor cell increase. patients infected with HIV virus are both fascinating Mir found a 79% incidence of lymphopenia in 40 and challenging to physicians and pathologists alike. patients with AIDS and in our series of 925 HIV Haematological abnormalities are well recognised in antibody positive patients studied during 1987, 305 HIV disease and result from diverse influences on the (33%) were lymphopenic; most of these patients had haemopoietic tissue. Changes in the peripheral blood AIDS or ARC.3 and bone marrow may reflect disease elsewhere in the Granulocytopenia is a less well recognised feature of body, may result from treatment for that disease, may HIV disease but was seen in 185 (20%) of 925 HIV reflect an attempt to attack the HIV virus itself, or may antibody positive patients (Haematological features of seem to be isolated haematological disorders. Only by HIV disease, Costello C, unpublished observations). http://jcp.bmj.com/ monitoring blood changes and correlating them with In Treacy's series two thirds ofthe patients with AIDS the clinical state of the patient can we hope to or ARC having bone marrow examinations were understand the mechanisms involved and to suggest granulocytopenic' and this figure was similar in a what their clinical importance might be. larger series of 60 patients at St Stephen's Hospital undergoing bone marrow examinations (Proceedings Peripheral blood changes of meeting on prospective indications for intravenous immunoglobulin, 1988).3 on October 1, 2021 by guest. Protected copyright. Leucopenia is common in patients with HIV infection A left shift in the granulocytic series is a common and seems to correlate with the severity of the disease. finding'4 and may reflect the clinical condition of the Two hundred and twelve (23%) ofa series of 925 HIV patient. The pathogenesis of neutropenia is obscure, antibody positive patients at this hospital were though several factors are likely to be important: leucopenic at some stage during their illness, and 88% concurrent infections, drugs which suppress the ofpatients with acquired immune deficiency syndrome marrow, and probably, in some cases, an immune (AIDS) or AIDS-related complex (ARC) were process. Murphy et al studied 105 HIV antibody leucopenic at presentation.' Ofinterest is the contribu- positive patients and found neutropenia in 20% of tion of lymphopenia, neutropenia, and granulo- patients with AIDS, 25% of patients with persistent cytopenia to the reduction of total number of white generalised lymphadenopathy (PGL), but none of 26 cells. asymptomatic HIV antibody positive subjects.5 He Lymphopenia in HIV disease is common, cells of performed granulocyte immunofluorescence tests the T helper phenotype being specifically depleted. In (GIFT) on 34 HIV antibody positive men, two with patients with AIDS and opportunistic infections AIDS, 24 with PGL, and eight who were asymp- immune function is more severely disturbed than in tomatic. Seven of the 34 were neutropenic and in four the GIFT reaction was positive. Six patients with Accepted for publication 3 March 1988 normal neutrophil counts also showed positive GIFT 711 J Clin Pathol: first published as 10.1136/jcp.41.7.711 on 1 July 1988. Downloaded from 712 Costello tests but in none of these patients with positive immune in aetiology, related to drugs, or part of the reactions was there any correlation with concentra- pancytopenia often seen in ill patients with opportun- tions of circulating immune complexes. Thus in at istic infections. least some patients with neutropenia an autoimmune The incidence ofthrombocytopenia has perhaps not mechanism might be implicated. been fully appreciated. The initial reluctance to put Van der Lehe also found granulocyte bound samples through a whole blood counter led to an immunoglobulin in patients with HIV disease and to a evaluation ofplatelet numbers often being made on a lesser extent in high risk patients without evidence of blood film. Mild degrees of thrombocytopenia were HIV disease.6 In some cases acid eluates from the quite likely overlooked. At this hospital we found a granulocytes contained immunoglobulins reacting 13% incidence of thrombocytopenia (121 of 925 with normal granulocytes, thus indicating that they patients studied over 12 months) in patients who were were autoantibodies rather than non-specifically at risk for HIV disease. Although most ofthe patients bound immune complexes. Presumably the immune had either AIDS or ARC, 12% of the patients with imbalance in HIV infected patients may result in the thrombocytopenia were HIV antibody positive, and production of autoantibodies to blood cells. asymptomatic. An alternative cause for the neutropenia seen in The diagnosis of immune thrombocytopenia is patients with HIV disease might be decreased bone often made on clinical and bone marrow findings as marrow production of granulocytes consequent on platelet-associated immunoglobulin testing has not inhibition ofgranulocyte progenitors. Leiderman et al been widely used in high risk patients for reasons of described deficiency of growth of the granulocyte- safety. In patients with reduced platelet numbers and macrophage progenitor cell (CFU-GM) from bone no splenomegaly, no drug treatment, and a marrow marrows of patients with HIV disease and postulated showing plentiful megakaryocytes, a presumptive that a glycoprotein present in the marrow of infected diagnosis ofimmune thrombocytopenia may be made. patients might be the inhibitory agent.' The condition varies in HIV antibody positive Monocytopenia was apparent in 79 (8 6%) of the patients, as in other patients with immune throm- 925 HIV antibody positive patients studied by Cos- bocytopenia, from a well compensated state with only tello and in a higher percentage ofpatients from whom a mild reduction in platelet numbers to a severe marrow aspirates were taken (35% of Treacy's series, condition with very low platelet counts. 43% of Mir's patients). Morphological abnormalities The mechanism for immune thrombocytopenia has of monocytes were observed by Treacy and also by been studied by several workers in the United States. the monocytes vacuol- Walsh et al showed high concentrations of platelet- Spivak,4 showing cytoplasmic http://jcp.bmj.com/ isation and abnormal nuclear features. associated IgG and complement in homosexual Anaemia is commonly seen in patients with patients with idiopathic thrombocytopenia (ITP).'2 AIDS,' 48 often reflecting reticuloendothelial iron These values were around four times higher than those block and effects of treatment with drugs such as seen in classic ITP and it is likely that they reflect co-trimoxazole, pentamidine, foscarnet and more deposition ofimmune complexes on the surface of the recently zidovudine (AZT). Blood transfusion is often platelet. Raised concentrations of immune complexes necessary in patients with AIDS, especially in those are commonly found in patients with HIV disease, and receiving AZT, a drug which produces severe anaemia interestingly, the homosexual control patients with on October 1, 2021 by guest. Protected copyright. in a proportion ofrecipients.9 Forty nine (36%) of 138 normal platelet counts had concentrations ofplatelet- patients treated with AZT at this hospital required associated IgG and complement which were sig- blood transfusion at least once.'" nificantly higher than those of non-homosexual con- Erythroid hypoplasia with severe anaemia has trols, suggesting that immune complex deposition on recently been described in patients with disseminated platelets may occur without large scale platelet des- Mycobacterium avium-intracellulae (MAI) infection." truction. Whether bone marrow stem cells are infected with A true antiplatelet autoantibody, however, may the HIV virus is as yet unknown but Zon suggested coexist with immune complexes on the surface of the that erythropoiesis could be suppressed by the action platelet. Strickler et al reported platelet membrane of the retrovirus on progenitor cell proliferation or antibody in homosexual patients with ITP with reac- maturation.8 Spivak raised the possibility of the tivity against a 25000 molecular weight platelet mem- anaemia in HIV disease being at least partly the result brane antigen, suggesting the presence of a 7S platelet of suppression oferythropoiesis by cell to cell interac- antibody.'3 tion.4 The imbalance ofT helper and T suppressor cell Furthermore, Van der Lelie eluted platelet bound populations in AIDS lends credence to this theory. immunoglobulin from his patients with HIV related Thrombocytopenia is a well recognised occurrence disease that