RESUMO
Objective To investigate the effects of thoracic epidural anesthesia and analgesia on cellular immune function and erythrocytes glycometabolism in the patients undergoing thoracic surgery.Methods Forty esophageal carcinoma patients,classified as ASA Ⅰ or Ⅱ,scheduled for elective thoracic surgery were randomly divided into two groups with 20 cases each：group A underwent general anesthesia plus thoracic epidural anesthesia （TEA） during thoracic surgery and received patient-controlled epidural analgesia （PCEA） with fentanyl and ropivacaine postoperatively;group B received general anesthesia during thoracic surgery and patient-controlled intravenous analgesia （PCIA） postoperatively. Venous blood samples were collected for the measurement of Th1,Th2 and the activities of PFK,G-6PD and AR before the induction（T0）,2 h after the initiation of the incision（T1）,and 4 h（T2）,24 h（T3）and 48 h（T4）after surgery. Results The Th1/Th2 ratio in both groups were decreased significantly after completion of surgery compared with baseline levels （P0.05）. At T2,T3 and T4 the Th1/Th2 ratio in group A were higher than group B. Compared with these before operation,the activity of PFK was decreased significantly and the activities of G-6PD and AR in erythrocytes were increased markedly at T3 in group B（P0.05）.But erythrocytes PFK,G-6PD and AR activity slightly changed in group A.Conclusion These findings show that thoracic epidural anesthesia and PCEA may inhibit Th0 cells to differentiate into Th2 cells,protect cellular immune function and moderate erythrocyte glucose metabolism changes.