T lymphocyte subset changes in human immunodeficiency virus infection.

The absolute number of CD4+ and CD8+ T cells was determined by an immunomagnetic technique directly in the blood of 75 healthy controls and 223 HIV-infected individuals. The HIV-seropositive individuals were also classified clinically according to the system recommended by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), and the CDC classification was correlated with the patients' T cell subset counts. Compared to the control group, the HIV-infected individuals demonstrated an early and sustained increase in the number of CD8+ T cells with median values of CDC groups II, III, and IV C2 twice that observed in the control group. Patients with AIDS had CD8+ T cell counts comparable to those of the control group. The HIV-infected individuals showed a decrease in the number of CD4+ T cells correlating with clinical deterioration of the disease. T cell subset counts significantly distinguished the group of healthy seropositive individuals from those with HIV-related disease, and the group of patients with AIDS from those with other HIV-related opportunistic infections.