Therapeutic effect of photodynamic therapy combined with imiquimod in the treatment of anal condyloma acuminatum (CA) was investigated to explore its effect on immune function. A total of 104 patients with anal CA were randomly divided into two groups: Patients in the study group were treated with photodynamic therapy combined with imiquimod, and ii) patients in the control group were treated with recombinant human interferon α-2b cream. Clinical efficacy and immune function related indicators were compared between the two groups. After treatment for 6 weeks, the cure rate and total effective rate of study group was 53.85 and 92.31%, respectively, which were significantly higher than those of the control group (30.77 and 75.00%, P<0.05). Recurrence rate of study group was 3.85% within 6 months after treatment, which was significantly lower than that of the control group (19.23%, P<0.05). After treatment, levels of CD4+, CD4+/CD8+ and IFN-γ in the study group were significantly higher than those in the control group, and levels of CD8+, IL-4 and IL-10 in the study group were significantly lower than those in the control group (P<0.05). Photodynamic therapy combined with imiquimod in the treatment of anus CA can regulate T lymphocyte subsets and cytokine levels, enhance immune function, improve clinical efficacy, reduce recurrence rate, and have almost no side effects. Therefore, this treatment should be popularized in clinical practice.
Keywords: T lymphocytes; anal condyloma acuminatum; cytokines; imiquimod; immune function; photodynamic therapy.