Objective To analyze the changes of circulating T lymphocyte subsets, NK cells and cytokines in children with severe hand-foot-mouth disease and their guiding significance in clinical practice. Methods Ninety-seven children with hand-foot-mouth disease who were admitted to our hospital from January 2018 to April 2020 were included in the study, and were divided into severe group (25 cases) and mild group (72 cases) according to the conditions. Fifty healthy children for physical examination were included as control group during the same period. The levels of T lymphocyte subsets (CD3+ T, CD4+ T, CD8+ T), NK cells and cytokines (TNF-α, IL-23, IL-22, IL-17) were detected. The above indicators of the control group, the mild group and the severe group were compared. The different infection types (Cox A16 type, EV 71 type, other infections) in the severe group were compared, and the differences between acute phase and recovery phase in the severe group, between the poor prognosis and the good prognosis in the severe group were also compared. The efficiency of 4 cytokines in predicting the prognosis was analyzed. Results The levels of CD3+ T, CD4+ T and NK cells from high to low were arranged in an order of the control group, mild group and severe group. CD8+ T cells from low to high were arranged in an order of the control group, mild group, and severe group. Serum TNF-α, IL-23, IL-22, IL-17 levels from low to high were arranged in an order of the control group, mild group, and severe group. By comparisons, the above differences had statistical significance (P<0.05). There were no statistically significant differences in T lymphocyte subsets, NK cells and cytokines of different infection types in severe group (P>0.05). Compared with the recovery phase, the levels of CD3+ T, CD4+ T and NK cells in the acute phase of critically ill children were lower, while the levels of CD8+ T, TNF-α, IL-23, IL-22, IL-17 were higher (P<0.05). Compared with the good prognosis group, the levels of CD3+ T, CD4+ T, NK cells were lower in the poor prognosis group, and the levels of CD8+ T, TNF-α, IL-23, IL-22, IL-17 were higher, with statistical significance (P<0.05). The sensitivity and accuracy of 4 cytokines in predicting the prognosis were 83.33% and 71.43%, respectively. Conclusions The detection of circulating T lymphocyte subsets, NK cells and cytokines is helpful for the judgment of hand-foot-mouth disease condition and predicts the prognosis of severe hand-foot-mouth children. |