A mandatory regular medical examination involves a blood test for the number of white blood cells. The relevance of this analysis is difficult to underestimate. After all, with his help, you can evaluate the work of the immune system of the human body.
The decoding of laboratory analysis indicators should be performed by the attending physician in order to evaluate together all the indicators and the degree of deviation from the norm. In order to fully monitor the state of your health, it is important to know how white blood cells are indicated in a blood test, the indicators of which are in laboratory analysis.
Clinical blood test
Clinical analysis is a study that shows the cellular composition of the blood. It is also called a "general blood test." By indicators, one can judge the hematopoietic system of the human body and the presence of certain diseases, inflammations, and tumors.
The analysis can be carried out in two ways - manually or using a special apparatus. When counting blood cells manually, the doctor writes the result in a special form, and then the question of how white blood cells are indicated in a blood test ceases to be relevant - the necessary information can be found in the corresponding section of the form, signed “white blood cells”.
But recently, most laboratories have been using an automatic method for studying the composition of blood, the result of which is not manually entered, but printed by the apparatus. All indicators of the analysis are encrypted, and a person who does not have a medical education often cannot determine how this or that component is recorded.
Therefore, you should remember how the white blood cells are indicated in the blood test - the letters WBC. The norm of this indicator is 4.5 * / l - 9 * / l.
Deviations from the norm
Before considering the issue of deviation of blood leukocyte counts from normal, it is important to consider the possibility of laboratory error. Therefore, in the event that the number indicated in the analysis opposite the letters WBC is above or below the norm, you need to donate blood again. And only if the laboratory records the pathological number of leukocytes again, it is necessary to identify the cause of this deviation.
If the white blood cells are below normal, the cause may be the following:
- Diseases of the bone marrow, which produces white blood cells.
- An infection in the fight against which white blood cells die.
- Vitamin deficiency, due to which leukocytes cannot be produced in the required amount.
A low white blood cell count can rarely be detected symptomatically, therefore it is extremely important to regularly undergo an examination and know how white blood cells are indicated in a clinical blood test.
An increase in white blood cells in the blood happens very often occasionally, and this process does not entail any danger to human life or health. A slight increase in the leukocyte count may occur during stress, after surgical interventions, during pregnancy, and a cold.
It is important to know that a slight deviation from the norm can hardly be cause for concern, a significant change in indicators indicates acute pathology. Therefore, knowing how white blood cells are indicated in a blood test in an adult or a child, it is not worthwhile to diagnose yourself.
But if the analysis suggests that the white blood cell count is different from the norm, it is necessary to consider all subspecies. In a clinical blood test, they can be seen 5:
- Lymphocytes
- Neutrophils.
- Eosinophils.
- Basophils.
- Monocytes.
Lymphocytes
Lymphocytes are cells that are tools of the immune system. They fight viruses and mutations.
For people who don’t know the letters used to indicate white blood cells in a blood test, it will be useful to know that lymphocytes are designated as LYM. They can be indicated as a percentage or number of cells per unit amount of blood.
In an adult, the percentage of lymphocytes in the blood should not exceed 37%, and the absolute number of cells - 4.8 * / l.
A persistent increase in indicators may indicate viral and bacterial infections, poisoning, and cancerous tumors. Lowering - for anemia, a disease of the hematopoietic system, cancer. Also, a decrease in lymphocytes occurs with chemo- and radiation therapy or with corticosteroids.
Neutrophils
Neutrophils (NEUT) - cells that are the first to take part in the fight against pathogenic organisms. They absorb the cell, which the immune system regards as potentially dangerous, thereby destroying it.
There are two types of neutrophils: stab and segmented. The norm of the first for an adult is up to 4 percent, the second - from 40 to 60.
An increase in the level of neutrophils occurs in the case of an infectious disease, with an acute stage of infection in the body, intoxication, and tumor. Sometimes a temporary increase in neutrophils occurs after vaccination.
A decrease in the number of neutrophils is noted either in the case when most of the cells have already died in the fight against cells that are dangerous to human health, that is, when a person has a serious viral or bacterial disease. The second reason is the initial cell failure, which occurs with blood diseases or bone marrow pathologies, which produces blood cells.
It is important to know that neutrophil counts are assessed in the overall picture of the patient’s health status. There are frequent cases when a slightly reduced level of neutrophils (neutropenia) is the norm for the body.
Eosinophils
Eosinophils are cells that get their name because of the laboratory diagnostic method in which the eosin dye is used. Their norm for an adult is 1-5 percent.
An increase in the level of eosinophils primarily indicates the activity of the immune system, for example, allergies. An increase in eosinophils occurs against the background of oncology or parasitic invasion.
Knowing how white blood cells are indicated in a blood test, you can also find an eosinophil count that looks like EO # or EO%.
Basophils
Basophils (BA) are the “intelligence cells” of the body. They circulate in the blood, and when pathological cells are detected, basophils cause an inflammatory reaction. Thanks to increased blood circulation at the site of the pathology, the immune system is able to quickly respond and eliminate the source of potential danger to human health and life.
The norm of basophils for an adult is from half to one percent. An increase in the level of the indicator occurs with allergies, infections, hyperthyroidism, and stomach ulcers.
It is very difficult to evaluate the decrease in basophils, because their content in the blood is minimal.
Monocytes
Monocytes are white blood cells that destroy pathogenic cells in the human body, absorbing them. Normally, their number should not exceed 12 percent.
The number of monocytes increases against any acute inflammatory processes (viral, bacterial, systemic diseases, lymphomas, leukemia). Lowering the level occurs with anemia and treatment with glucocorticosteroids.
In order to find the indicator in the printout of the analysis, you need to know how the leukocytes are indicated in the blood test when counting monocytes - MON% or MON #.
Indicators in children
Therapists and pediatricians use different indicators of normal values when decoding the analyzes. Sometimes the number of certain leukocyte cells coincides in adults and children, for example, monocytes, but most often the indicators differ.
First of all, when a question arises about how white blood cells are indicated in a blood test in a child, you should know that there is no difference in the graphic designation of the indicators. But the norm of all types of white blood cells for children and adults is different. The number of almost all leukocytes, except neutrophils, is normally higher in children.
Thus, parents should not worry if the numbers in the decoding of the children's analysis differ from the indicators normal for an adult.
Having information on how leukocytes are indicated in blood tests in children and adults, it is possible to make a preliminary diagnosis of a state of health in any situation.