Abstract:Abstract OBJECTIVE: To investigate the correlation between Treg/Th17 in peripheral blood and time of onset in patients with postherpetic neuralgia. METHODS: Forty-eight patients with postherpetic neuralgia and 22 healthy controls during the same period were selected for the study, and data on each of their lymphocyte subpopulations were collected and compared. The levels of Treg cells and Th17 cells in the peripheral blood of patients with postherpetic neuralgia and healthy controls were measured using flow cytometry, and the ratio of Th17 to Treg cells was calculated. The ratio of Treg cells, the ratio of Th17 cells, and Treg/Th17 were compared between patients with postherpetic neuralgia and the healthy population. Patients' time from onset to consultation was counted, and the correlation between Treg/Th17 and onset time in patients with postherpetic neuralgia was analyzed. RESULTS: Compared with the control group, the number of CD4+ lymphocytes in peripheral blood decreased significantly (P < 0.05) and the percentage of Treg cells, Th17 cells, Treg/Th17, and CD8+/CD4+ ratios increased significantly (P < 0.05) in the patient group; Pearson correlation analysis showed that Treg/Th17 in patients with postherpetic neuralgia was positively correlated with time to onset (P < 0.05). Conclusion: Treg and Th17 cells were significantly increased in the peripheral blood of patients with herpes zoster, suggesting that both cells play an important role in the disease regression process by altering the function of the immune system. The positive correlation between Treg/Th17 and time of onset in patients with postherpetic neuralgia may imply that with the relative increase of Treg cells, it causes immune system dysfunction and prolongs the course of the disease in patients.