The turnover of synovial T cells is higher than in T cells in the peripheral blood in persistent oligoarticular juvenile idiopathic arthritis.

Juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) summarizes a group of inflammatory diseases of childhood. The etiology remains still unclear. In JIA, T cells have been demonstrated to play key roles in the pathogenesis. T-cell proliferation in JIA may be different in the peripheral blood (PB) and the synovial fluid (SF). The aim of this study is to demonstrate the turnover of T cells in the PB and SF of patients with persistent oligoarticular JIA (oJIA) compared to controls. Matched pairs of samples were investigated derived from PB and SF of nine patients with persistent oJIA. The cells from PB and SF were determined by flow cytometry. The majority of the PBMC and IAMC were in phase G0/G1, with fewer than 1% in S phase. In the SF, the percentage of cells in the S phase are higher than in the PB. The percentage of cells in the S phase in SF are equal to the result in the control group. In conclusion, the turnover of synovial T cells in persistent oJIA is higher than in the PB.