Characteristics of lipids imbalance in patients with tick-borne encephalitis.

Using a novel approach, we have analyzed 30 parameters characterizing detailed spectrum and fractional content of LPs in plasma of patients with tick-borne encephalitis (TBE). The blood plasma of all TBE patients (30 patients), as compared with that of healthy individuals (120 patients), is characterized by decreased concentrations of many LP subfractions and of the total concentration of all plasma LPs (hypolipoproteinemia). The observed difference in some parameters was statistically significant. Using computer-assisted factor analysis, we have shown that according to these 30 parameters TBE patients are similar to patients with multiple sclerosis and systemic lupus erythematosus. The results provide grounds for using data on blood plasma LPs as additional criteria for diagnosis of TBE.