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The Prognosis of Asymptomatic Homosexual Men with Decreased T‐Helper to T‐Suppressor Ratio
Author(s) -
GERSTOFT J.,
DICKMEISS E.,
BENTSEN K.,
PETERSEN C. S.,
KROON S.,
ULLMAN S.,
NIELSEN J. O.,
LORENZEN I.
Publication year - 1984
Publication title -
scandinavian journal of immunology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.934
H-Index - 88
eISSN - 1365-3083
pISSN - 0300-9475
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-3083.1984.tb00930.x
Subject(s) - asymptomatic , suppressor , medicine , immunology , cancer
Screening of 70 asymptomatic homosexual men in Copenhagen revealed that 13 (19%) had T‐helper to T‐suppressor (H/S) ratios ≤ 1.0. Clinical and immunological follow‐up examinations for 2—7 months (mean, 5.2 months) disclosed that none of the 13 men developed the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) or AIDS‐like symptoms. An increase in H/S ratios to > 1.0 was observed in 11 of the 13 men during the time of observation. The decreased H/S ratios were due to an increase in the T‐suppressor population. The T‐helper population did not at any time differ from that found in 31 male control subjects. The biological relevance of the observed decrease in H/S ratios was supported by the demonstration of a positive correlation to a decrease in the proliferative response of the lymphocytes. Serological studies did not reveal any specific infectious background for the low H/S ratio found in the 13 men, and the reason for the ‘spontaneous’ increase during the time of observation remains unknown. The present results indicate that most asymptomatic homosexual men with a decreased H/S ratio will experience normalization of the immunological variables.