Immunosuppressive effect in oral and maxillofacial surgery

ABSTRACT

Using tissue culture techniques, peripheral blood lymphocytes [PBL], obtained from patients undergoing various types of oral and maxillofacial surgical operations, have been found to develop depressed immunological competence as reflected by their diminished ability, under maximal stimulation with phytohaemagglutinin, to incorporate 14 C thymidine and synthesise D.N.A. More important, however, was the observation that this biosynthetic defect was most severe in lymphocytes harvested from individuals of maxillofacial trauma with associated injuries and oral cancer. The clinical significance of this abnormality measured in vitro may be reflected by postoperative infection in case of multiple trauma, and the acceleration of metastasis which often takes place postoperatively in patients with carcinoma