Circulating immune complexes in sera of patients with gynecologic disorders.

Overview

Sera from 211 women seen in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the New York Hospital were assayed for CIC by the Raji cell enzyme linked immunosorbent assay. Only 9 per cent of healthy women (two of 21), 6 per cent of pregnant women (two of 34), 2 per cent of women with benign tumors (one of 39) and 5 per cent of women with vaginal and cervical infection (two of 37) had detectable CIC. CIC was present in low concentrations when it was found. In marked contrast, 80 per cent of the patients with Condylomata acuminatum infection (eight of ten), 46 per cent with acute salpingitis (11 of 24) and 39 per cent with gynecologic malignant diseases (13 of 33) had CIC, usually at high levels. In a patient with salpingitis, CIC was shown to be 19S and 14S, dissociable at acid pH and capable of activating complement.