[Comparative study of the role of cytokines in different forms of eye diseases. 1. Tumor necrosis factor-alpha].

Local and total-systems production of tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF) is studied in 214 patients with different clinical forms of inflammatory and other than inflammatory diseases of the eyes. Healthy donors were controls. A total of 265 blood sera, 335 lacrimal fluid samples, and 9 specimens of subretinal fluid were examined. The pathogenetic role of TNF was most persuasively confirmed for corneoscleral injuries, proliferative diabetic retinopathy, and total detachment of the retina. Local and systemic cytokine hyperproduction observed in these patients was associated with a grave course and unfavorable outcomes. One more manifestation of immunopathology was pronounced imbalance between the cytokine content in the lacrimal fluid and serum, which was observed in patients with active bilateral uveitis, extensive detachments of the retina, and complicated cataracts. The unfavorable impact of TNF deficiency during the development of a pathological process in the eye (early stages of diabetic retinopathy, burns, and contusions of the eye) is discussed. Clinical and immunological data validate the efficacy of TNF test for predicting the course of an eye disease, monitoring its treatment, and assessing the desirability of immunocorrection.