Serum autoantibodies in recurrent parotitis in children.

BACKGROUND: Recurrent parotitis in children is a relatively frequent disease, the pathogenesis of which has not been cleared yet. OBJECTIVES: The possibility of autoimmune mechanisms participating in the disease development was evaluated. METHODS: 20 sera samples from patients with recurrent parotitis in children were examined. The presence of autoantibodies was tested on cryostat sections of the parotid gland tissue using direct immunofluorescence. RESULTS: In 17 sera the presence of autoantibodies reacting with the cytoplasm of acinar cells and in 8 antibodies reacting with the cytoplasm of ductal cells were found. Mostly they were of IgM class, less frequently the IgG type. Anti-nuclear antibodies were not identified. CONCLUSIONS: With regard to the clinical finding of isolated and mostly unilateral affliction of the parotid gland, the found autoantibodies cannot be considered pathognomic, causing an autoimmune disease. It is assumed that these autoantibodies are produced in response to the primary damage of the salivary gland, the cause of which has not been fully explained so far. (Tab. 1, Fig. 4, Ref. 14.).