The Levels and Clinical Significance of Peripheral Blood T Lymphocyte Subsets in Patients with Chronic Heart Failure

ZENG Chuixu; ZHENG Meifan; LIN Ying; LUO Yuanping; ZHAN Zhihui; LI Kandong; ZHAO Shengji; YAO Yanan; WU Zhongwei

doi:10.12102/j.issn.1672-1349.2025.15.014

Abstract：Objective: To observe the changes in peripheral blood T lymphocyte subset levels in patients with chronic heart failure (CHF), and to analyze the relationship between T lymphocyte subsets and cardiac function. Methods: A total of 196 CHF patients diagnosed at Hainan West Central Hospital between May 2020 and May 2023 were selected as the study group, and 196 healthy individuals who underwent health check-ups during the same period were selected as the healthy control group. The cardiac function of the study group was assessed according to the New York Heart Association (NYHA) classification. At admission, the peripheral blood T lymphocyte levels of all participants were detected. The levels of peripheral blood T lymphocytes between the study group and the healthy control group were compared. Additionally, the levels of T lymphocyte subsets in CHF patients with different NYHA functional classifications were compared, along with the levels of heart failure biomarkers [N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP)]. The correlations between T lymphocyte subset levels and NT-proBNP levels or NYHA functional classification were analyzed. Results: The levels of CD3+ and CD4+ in the study group were lower than those in the healthy control group (P < 0.001), while the level of CD8+ was higher (P < 0.001). There were statistically significant differences in NT-proBNP levels and peripheral blood T lymphocyte subsets (CD8+, CD3+, CD4+) among CHF patients with different NYHA functional classifications (P < 0.001). NT-proBNP and CD8+ levels in patients with NYHA class III/IV were higher than those in patients with NYHA class I and II, and NT-proBNP and CD8+ levels in patients with NYHA class II were higher than those in patients with NYHA class I, with statistical significance (P < 0.05). The levels of CD3+ and CD4+ in patients with NYHA class III/IV were lower than those in patients with NYHA class I and II, and the levels of CD3+ and CD4+ in patients with NYHA class II were lower than those in patients with NYHA class I, with statistical significance (P < 0.05). Correlation analysis showed that CD3+ and CD4+ levels were negatively correlated with NT-proBNP levels (P < 0.01), while CD8+ levels were positively correlated with NT-proBNP levels (P < 0.01). The NYHA functional classification of CHF patients was negatively correlated with CD3+ and CD4+ T cells (P < 0.01) and positively correlated with CD8+ (P < 0.01). Conclusion: The levels of peripheral blood T lymphocyte subsets in CHF patients are abnormally expressed and are related to the patient's cardiac function classification.