Features of peripheral blood at a dysplasia of connective tissue

In modern medicine, quite a lot of attention is paid to the problem of connective tissue dysplasia (CTD). One of the most common manifestations of CTD is primary mitral valve prolapse (MVP), characterized by a variety of cardiac and non-cardiac symptoms. Despite the abundance of data on the clinical picture of MVP, a number of questions remain poorly studied, including changes in peripheral blood, some aspects of which it was possible to study by assessing the phenomenon of endogenous autorosette formation. 

Objective. The aim of the study is to evaluate the severity and activity of the endogenous autorosette formation process in peripheral blood in connective tissue dysplasia. 

Materials and methods. A survey of 76 patients with MVP and CTD was performed to assess the phenomenon of endogenous autorosette formation in the peripheral blood in patients with CTD. All patients underwent capillary blood sampling. In blood smears (Romanowsky-Giemsa stain), the total number of leukocytes (L) was counted, the leukocyte formula was determined, rosette-forming cells were counted in percent per 100 L. 

Results. As a result of counting rosette-forming cells per 100 leukocytes, a striking increase in the number of autorosettes, especially with exocytic lysis of erythrocytes membranes, was found in the peripheral blood of the examined persons compared to healthy ones (p<0.001). In addition, the dependence of the intensity of endogenous rosette-forming on the degree of prolapse of the mitral valve cusps and on the combination of MVP with other heart anomalies was noted. 

Conclusion. The detected increase in the peripheral blood of autorosettes in patients with MVP complements the clinical picture and confirms the systematic nature of the pathology, and the predominance of neutrophilic autorosettes with exocytic lysis among the total number of autorosettes indicates a high activity of the process. The noted dependence of the intensity of endogenous rosette-forming on the degree of prolapse of the mitral valve cusps and on the combination of MVP with other heart anomalies reflects the severity of CTD.