Table 4

Cytokine production in biopsy specimens from synovial tissue obtained at orthopaedic surgery from patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA21-40) with late disease (a mean duration of 22 years) or from control patients (HV41-48) without rheumatic disease treated for hallux valgus displacement

Patient number	IL1α^4-150	IL1β^4-150	IL6^4-150	TNFα^4-150	Control	Patient number	IL1α	IL1β	IL6	TNFα	Control
RA-21	+	+++	0	0	0	RA-35	0	+++	0	0	0
RA-22	+	+++	0	+	0	RA-36	0	0	+	++	0
RA-23	+	+++	0	0	0	RA-37	0	0	++	++	0
RA-24	+	++	+	0	0	RA-38	+	+++	++	+	0
RA-25	0	++	0	0	0	RA-39	0	++	0	0	0
RA-26	+	++	0	0	0	RA-40	+	++	0	++	0
RA-27	++	+++	++	0	0	HV-41	+	+	+	+	0
RA-28	++	+++	+	+	0	HV-42	0	0	0	0	0
RA-29	++	+++	+	+	0	HV-43	0	0	0	0	0
RA-30	++	+++	+	+	0	HV-44	0	0	0	0	0
RA-31	++	+++	0	0	0	HV-45	0	0	0	0	0
RA-32	+	+++	++	0	0	HV-46	0	0	0	0	0
RA-33	ND^4-150	ND	0	++	0	HV-47	0	0	0	0	0
RA-34	0	++	0	+	0	HV-48	0	+	0	0	0

↵4-150 IL1α = interleukin 1α; IL1β = interleukin 1β; IL6 = interleukin 6; TNFα = tumour necrosis factor α; ND = not done.
Consecutive tissue sections from synovial tissue samples from orthopaedic surgery were immunohistochemically stained for cytokines and scored. IL1β, IL6, and TNFα expressing cells were quantified: + = 1–10 positive cells per section; ++ = 11–100 positive cells per section; +++ represents >100 positive cells per section. IL1α, a cytokine mainly expressed in the synovial tissue in vascular endothelial cells, was scored in a different way: + = expressed in vascular endothelial cells in large vessels; ++ = in small and large blood vessels; +++ = in small and large blood vessels plus macrophages. The size of each tissue section ranged from 20 to 90 mm².