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Transcutaneous measurement of PO 2 and PCO 2 in the dermis at the site of the tuberculin reaction in healthy human subjects
Author(s) -
Spence V. A.,
Beck J. Swanson
Publication year - 1988
Publication title -
the journal of pathology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.964
H-Index - 184
eISSN - 1096-9896
pISSN - 0022-3417
DOI - 10.1002/path.1711550403
Subject(s) - respiration , tuberculin , medicine , hypercapnia , hypoxia (environmental) , pco2 , skin reaction , respiratory system , dermis , lesion , physiology , immunology , anesthesia , surgery , pathology , oxygen , tuberculosis , chemistry , anatomy , organic chemistry
The respiration of the skin at the site of a delayed hypersensitivity reaction in tuberculin skin tests was studied by transcutaneous measurement of dermal oxygen and carbon dioxide tensions in normal individuals who had been immunized with BCG: six reactions were strong positives, four were weak positives, and four without induration were regarded as negative. The tcPO 2 fell over the first 2 days of the reaction and remained low for the next 2 days: the severity of the changes was greater in the ‘strong’ reactions than in the ‘weak’ reactions. The tcPCO 2 showed a reciprocal rise over the first 2 days and, although still high, tended to recover over the fourth day. These results indicate that local hypoxia and hypercapnia are prominent features of the positive tuberculin test, probably as a consequence of the respiration of the infiltrating lymphocytes and monocytes. It is likely that similar respiratory changes occur in those chronic inflammatory diseases where delayed hypersensitivity reactions make a contribution to the pathogenesis of the lesion.