The effect of anaesthesia and surgery for benign disease of the upper urinary tract on circulating leucocyte subpopulations identified with monoclonal antibodies.

Circulating lymphocyte subpopulations were monitored, using monoclonal antibodies and flow cytometry, in six patients undergoing surgery for benign disease of the upper urinary tract. A significant decrease in the total number of circulating lymphocytes was observed. This could be attributed to a significant decrease of T cells of both major subsets--the so-called T "helper" (Th) and T "suppressor/cytotoxic" (Ts) subpopulations. When the results of the T cell subsets were expressed as a ration (leu-3a+/leu-2a+, T "helper/suppressor") no significant change was noted. In contrast neither B cells nor natural killer (NK) and antibody dependent killer (K) cells were significantly affected. This selective loss of T cells from the circulation may be relevant to post operative infection and should be considered in the course of immunological monitoring.