Immune Function in Surgical and Traumatic Injury: Mechanisms, Modulation, and Clinical Implications

The thesis addresses how surgery and severe trauma can temporarily disrupt the immune response, making infections and complications more likely. It shows that the amount of tissue damage is a key contributor to this impairment. Patients whose immune system recovered more slowly had a higher risk of infectious complications, and certain immune-related markers in blood samples may allow such high-risk patients to be identified earlier. Laboratory experiments also indicated that specific immune-stimulating compounds could partly restore the weakened immune response after severe trauma. The work adds to understanding of post-surgery and post-trauma immunity and offers clues that may inform future treatments to prevent complications.