Comparison of T lymphocyte subsets in aplastic anemia and hypoplastic myelodysplastic syndromes

Abstract Aims This study aims to compare the proportion of peripheral blood T lymphocyte subsets and related blood cell and bone marrow cytology indexes between patients with aplastic anemia (AA) and hypoplastic myelodysplastic syndrome (hypo-MDS), and investigate the clinical identification significance. Materials and methods A total of 41 patients with AA and 46 patients with hypo-MDS were collected, and the proportions of peripheral blood T lymphocyte subsets, CD3− CD16/CD56+ NK cells, CD3+ CD57+ T-LGL cells and CD19+ B lymphocytes were detected by flow cytometry. Key findings The CD4+/CD8+ ratio decreased in the AA and hypo-MDS groups, and the difference was statistically significant when compared with that in the control group (P   0.05). The proportions of CD3− CD16/CD56+ NK cells and CD3+ CD57+ T-LGL cells in the hypo-MDS group were distinctly higher than those in the AA group (P  Significance Changes of T lymphocyte subsets and the proportions of large granular lymphocytes and B lymphocytes can be utilized as indexes in the differential diagnosis between AA and hypo-MDS.