Biochemical and Histometrical Studies of Idiopathic Splenomegaly (So-called Banti's Syndrome)

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The oxygen consumption (Qo₂) and the activities of succinic dehydrogenase (SDH) and lactic dehydrogenase (LDH) were measured on 14 spleens from patients with so-called Banti's syndrome and 13 control spleens by means of Warburg's manometry, and histometrical examination was performed. There was an appreciable decrease in Qo₂ and LDH in the Banti spleen, but no difference in SDH between the Banti spleen and the control. Therefore, there is possibly a decrease in glycolysis in the Banti spleen but its TCA cycle operates normally. Qo₂, SDH and LDH were much more reduced in the Banti spleen with predominant sinus hyperplasia than in the spleen with predominant pulp hyperplasia. The decrease in Qo₂ in the Banti spleen seems to be not due to a decrease in blood flow but to the factors inherent in the tissue itself. Histometrical studies suggested that the increase in cells in the red pulp of the Banti spleen plays an essential role in bringing about the changes in Qo₂, SDH and LDH, even though a possible role of lymphocytes, the main constituent of the white pulp, cannot be denied.