Study of CD4 and CD8 Subsets in Morbid Obese Population

Background: Immune dysfunction is one of the co-morbidities that became well recognized several years ago in people with obesity. Objective. To study the peripheral blood T-cell compartment, the absolute counts and relative frequencies of T-cell subpopulations including CD8+T cells; CD4+Tcells in adults suffering morbid obesity compared to lean subjects. Patients and methods: This case-control study included 30 adults with morbid obesity and 20 lean healthy subjects who were age and sex-matched.CD4 and CD8 absolute and relative count together with CD4/CD8 ratio were assessed and compared between the two groups. Results: Adults with morbid obesity had higher total leucocyte count (TLC), CD4 percentage, CD4 absolute count, and CD4/CD8 ratio than that of controls. On the other hand, the CD8 percentage was lower in people with morbid obesity. There were positive correlations between CD4% and BMI, waist circumference, cholesterol, triglyceride, LDL, and TLC and neutrophils count. There was a negative correlation between the percentage of CD8 and BMI. CD4/CD8 ratio correlated positively with BMI but negatively with systolic blood pressure. Conclusion: CD4+ CD8+ T lymphocytes assay could help assess the immune state and recognize obese at risk of immune dysfunction complication as infection and metabolic diseases.