Hyaluronidase treatment of synovial fluid is required for accurate detection of inflammatory cells and soluble mediators

BACKGROUND: Synovial fluid (SF) is commonly used for diagnostic and research purposes, as it is believed to reflect the local inflammatory environment. Owing to its complex composition and especially the presence of hyaluronic acid, SF is usually viscous and non-homogeneous. In this study, we investigated the importance of homogenization of the total SF sample before subsequent analysis. METHODS: SF was obtained from the knee of 29 arthritis patients (26 rheumatoid arthritis, 2 osteoarthritis, and 1 juvenile idiopathic arthritis patient) as part of standard clinical care. Synovial fluid was either treated with hyaluronidase as a whole or after aliquoting to determine whether the concentration of soluble mediators is evenly distributed in the viscous synovial fluid. Cytokine and IgG levels were measured by ELISA or Luminex and a total of seven fatty acid and oxylipin levels were determined using LC-MS/MS in all aliquots. For cell analysis, synovial fluid was first centrifuged and the pellet was separated from the fluid. The fluid was subsequently treated with hyaluronidase and centrifuged to isolate remaining cells. Cell numbers and phenotype were determined using flow cytometry. RESULTS: In all patients, there was less variation in IgG, 17-HDHA, leukotriene B(4) (LTB(4)), and prostaglandin E(2) (PGE(2)) levels when homogenization was performed before aliquoting the SF sample. There was no difference in variation for cytokines, 15-HETE, and fatty acids arachidonic acid (AA), eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). Between 0.8 and 70% of immune cells (median 5%) remained in suspension and were missing in subsequent analyses when the cells were isolated from untreated SF. This percentage was higher for T and B cells: 7–85% (median 22%) and 7–88% (median 23 %), respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Homogenization of the entire SF sample leads to less variability in IgG and oxylipin levels and prevents erroneous conclusions based on incomplete isolation of synovial fluid cells. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s13075-021-02696-4.