Morphometric and DNA Image Analysis of Bronchoalveolar Lavage Fluid Macrophages Nuclei in Interstitial Lung Diseases with Lymphocytic Alveolitis

Lymphocytic alveolitis is a characteristic of diverse interstitial lung diseases (ILD-s), but macrophages are often more numerous cell population in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF). Aim of this study is to analyze morphometric characteristics of macrophages nuclei in BALF in patients with ILD-s and to detect possible differences allowing distinguishing sarcoidosis from other lymphocytic alveolitis ILD-s. Thirty-one patient with interstitial lung disease who had lymphocytic alveolitis in BALF cell count (17 sarcoidosis and 14 other ILD-s) and nine controls were included in the study. The following patients data were numbered: age, lymphocyte percentage and CD4/CD8 ratio in BALE Investigated morphometric parameters of macrophages nuclei were: area, outline, maximal radius, minimal radius, length, breadth, form factor (FF), elongation factor (EF) and DNA image cytometry ploidy status determined with Van Velthoven method. Predicted classifications in classification matrix (forward step-wise method in multivariate discriminant function analysis) based on macrophages nuclei length mean, minimum and maximum, breadth SD, FF mean and lymphocyte % were 100% (919) correct for control group, 88.235% (15/17) correct for sarcoidosis, and 92.857% (13/14) correct for other lymphocytic alveolitis ILD group. In total, 92.5% (37/40) of the examinees were correctly classified in particular group upon the observed variables.