Abstract
This study sought to investigate the impact of adenoid hypertrophy (AH), allergic rhinitis (AR) and their coexistence on peripheral blood T lymphocyte subsets in pediatric patients. A cohort of 916 children aged 3 to 14 years, recruited from hospital visits between January and December 2022, was divided into four groups: AH only [n=316], AR only [n=176], AH+AR [n=379] and healthy controls [n=145]. T lymphocyte subsets were assessed via flow cytometry. Compared with the control group, all three disease groups exhibited significantly elevated absolute counts of CD3⁺ and CD8⁺ T cells (P < 0.0083), although no notable differences were observed in the proportional distribution of these subsets. The AR group demonstrated a significantly higher absolute CD4⁺ T cell counts relative to both the control and AH groups (P < 0.0083), while the AH group had a greater percentage of CD8⁺ T cells than the AR group. These findings indicate that both AH and AR contribute to an increase in total peripheral T lymphocyte counts. AR more substantially affects CD4⁺ T cells, yet across all conditions, the predominant effect is an expansion of the overall lymphocyte population rather than an alteration in the proportional balance among T cell subsets.
Keywords: Adenoid Hypertrophy, Allergic Rhinitis, Children, Non-parametric Test, T Lymphocyte Subsets.