How are white blood cells indicated in the blood test and what are their norms?

An obligatory 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 deciphering of the indicators of laboratory analysis should be made 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 your health, it is important to know how white blood cells are indicated in the blood test, the indicators of which are in the laboratory analysis.

Clinical blood test

Clinical analysis is a study that shows the cellular composition of the blood. It is also called the "general blood test." In terms of indicators, one can judge the hematopoietic system of the human body and the presence of certain diseases, inflammations, tumors.

The analysis can be carried out in two ways - manually or by means of a special apparatus. When counting blood cells manually, the doctor enters the result in a special form, and then the question of how white blood cells are indicated in the blood test ceases to be relevant - the necessary information can be found in the corresponding section of the form signed with "leukocytes".

But recently, most laboratories use an automatic method to study the composition of blood, the result of which is not brought manually, but printed out by the apparatus. All indicators of analysis are encrypted, and a person who does not have medical education can often not determine how a particular component is recorded.

Therefore, you should remember how the white blood cells are designated in the blood test - with 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 white blood cell counts from normal, it is important to consider the possibility of a laboratory error. Therefore, in the event that the number indicated in the analysis opposite the letters WBC, above or below the norm, you need to donate blood again. And only if the laboratory registers 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 leukocytes.
• Infection, in the fight against which leukocytes die.
• Avitaminosis, because of which leukocytes can not be produced in the required quantity.

A low number of white blood cells can rarely be detected symptomatically, so it is extremely important to have a regular check-up and to know how white blood cells are indicated in a clinical blood test.

The increase in leukocytes in the blood occurs sporadically very often, and this process does not entail any danger to human life or health. A slight increase in the number of white blood cells can occur with stress, after surgery, during pregnancy, colds.

It is important to know that a slight deviation from the norm can hardly be a cause for concern, a sharp change in indicators indicates a sharp pathology. Therefore, knowing how white blood cells are indicated in the analysis of blood in an adult or child, it is not necessary to engage in diagnostics yourself.

But if the analysis suggests that the number of leukocytes is different from the norm, all subspecies should be considered. 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 against viruses and mutations.

For people who do not know what letters mark white blood cells in the blood test, it will be useful to know that the lymphocytes are designated as LYM. They can be indicated as a percentage or number of cells per unit 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 the indices may indicate viral and bacterial infections, poisoning, oncological tumors. Decrease - anemia, disease of the hematopoietic system, cancer. Also, a decrease in lymphocytes occurs with chemo-and radiation therapy or with the use of corticosteroids.

Neutrophils

Neutrophils (NEUT) are the 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.

Neutrophils are of two types: stabnoid and segmented. The rate 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 a transmitted infectious disease, with an acute stage of infection in the body, intoxication, and tumors. 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 dangerous to human health, that is, when a person has a serious viral or bacterial disease. The second reason is the initial deficiency of cells, which happens in blood diseases or pathologies of the bone marrow, which produces blood cells.

It is important to know that neutrophil counts are evaluated in the overall picture of the patients' health status. There are cases when an insignificantly lowered level of neutrophils (neutropenia) is the norm for the organism.

Eosinophils

Eosinophils are cells that have received their name because of the method of laboratory diagnosis, in which the dye eosin is used. Their norm for an adult is 1-5 percent.

Increasing the level of eosinophils primarily signals the activity of the immune system, for example, about allergies. The increase of eosinophils occurs against the background of oncology or parasitic invasion.

Knowing how white blood cells are indicated in the blood test, one can also find the eosinophil count, which looks like EO # or EO%.

Basophils

Basophils (BA) - "spy cells" of the body. They circulate in the blood, and when pathological cells are detected, the basophils cause an inflammatory response. Due to increased blood circulation at the site of pathology, the immune system is able to quickly respond and eliminate the source of potential danger to human health and life.

The rate of basophils for an adult is between half and one percent. The increase in the level of the indicator occurs with allergies, infections, hyperthyroidism, stomach ulcer.

Lowering basophils is very difficult to assess, because their content in the blood is minimal.

Monocytes

Monocytes are leukocytes that destroy pathogenic cells in the human body, absorbing them. Normally, their number should not exceed the figure of 12 percent.

The number of monocytes rises on the background of any acute inflammatory processes (viral, bacterial, systemic diseases, lymphomas, leukemias). Lowering of the level occurs with anemia and treatment with glucocorticosteroids.

In order to find the indicator in the analysis printout, it is necessary to know how white blood cells 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 deciphering the analyzes. Sometimes the number of these or those leukocyte cells coincides in adults and children, for example, monocytes, but most often the indicators differ.

First of all, when an issue arises, how white blood cells are indicated in a child's blood test, you should know that there is no difference in the graphical indication of the indices. But the norm of all types of leukocytes for children and adults is different. The number of almost all leukocytes, except for neutrophils, in children is normally higher.

Thus, parents should not worry if the figures in the decoding of the child's analysis differ from those that are normal for an adult.

Possessing information, as marked by white blood cells in the analysis of blood in children and adults, it is possible in any situation to make a preliminary diagnosis of the state of health.