Laboratory Medicine ›› 2025, Vol. 40 ›› Issue (3): 235-240.DOI: 10.3969/j.issn.1673-8640.2025.03.006

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Immunological indexes in assessing the prognosis of children with autoimmune encephalitis

YANG Hancao, LIANG Keqing, WU Ming, XU Jin()   

  1. Department of Clinical Laboratory,the Children's Hospital of Fudan University,the National Children's Medical Center,Shanghai 201102,China
  • Received:2024-07-27 Revised:2025-01-14 Online:2025-03-30 Published:2025-04-10

Abstract:

Objective To evaluate the prognostic value of lymphocyte subsets,immunoglobulins and complements in peripheral blood for children with autoimmune encephalitis (AE). Methods From January 2015 to April 2024,52 children diagnosed with AE at the Children's Hospital of Fudan University were enrolled. The levels of autoantibodies,lymphocyte subsets,immunoglobulins(IgG,IgM,IgA,total IgE),complements(C3,C4)and 50% complement hemolysis(CH50)in serum and cerebrospinal fluid were determined. According to the modified Rankin Scale (mRS) score at discharge,the children were classified into good prognosis group (29 cases) and poor prognosis group (23 cases). Spearman correlation analysis was used to assess the relationship between each parameter and mRS score. Logistic regression analysis was used to evaluate the risk factors for poor prognosis. Receiver operating characteristic(ROC) curve was used to evaluate the efficacy of each parameter. Results Compared to good prognosis group,the CH50 level,natural killer(NK)cell percentage and NK absolute number of poor prognosis group were decreased (P<0.05). There was no statistical significance in the other parameters between the 2 groups (P>0.05). Serum CH50 level,NK cell percentage and NK absolute number were negatively correlated with mRS score(r values were -1.313,-0.276 and -0.379,P<0.05). The decreased NK absolute number was an independent factor for poor prognosis in children with AE [odds ratio(OR)=0.994,95% confidence interval(CI)0.988-0.999]. The areas under curves of CH50 and NK absolute number were 0.674,0.738 and 0.768,respectively. Conclusions Serum CH50 level and NK absolute number in peripheral blood are associated to the prognosis of children with AE,and may serve as parameters for the prognosis of children with AE.

Key words: Lymphocyte subset, Natural killer cell, Immunoglobulin, Complement, Autoimmune encephalitis

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