SERUM RHEUMATOID FACTORS IN SPINAL-CORD INJURY PATIENTS

The rheumatoid factor (RF) levels of IgM-RF and IgG-RF types in sera f rom patients with spinal cord injuries (SCI) and osteochondrosis were investigated by ELISA. According to the findings in the late stages of the disease, SCI patients showed 46% seropositiveness for IgG-RF and 40% for IgM-RF. Patients with fresh central nervous system (CNS) injur ies were 12% and 14% seropositive, respectively. Patients with osteoch ondrosis exhibited 33% seropositiveness for IgG-RF. The determination of serum RF enables us to identify the systemic body lesion in the SCI late stages as a rheumatoid disease. These data support the conclusio n that RF determination is a reliable serological indicator of the sev erity of a patient's traumatic disease.