Neutropenia

Question: Neutropenia? I recently found out that I have Neutropenia in my blood. I was wondering if anyone out there has had or know someone that has had to experience this. I'm about to have a bone marrow sample treatment or whatever, but I'm really wanting to know what to expect, types of treatments given and the severity of this. PLEASE HELP! Any information would be helpful!

Answer: Neutropenia isn't IN your blood. It's a term characterizing your blood cells, or in this case, lack there of. Blood consists of red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets. Neutropenia is the absence of a certain type of white blood cell, the neutrophil. (Neutro- neutrophil; penia-low/deficiency). White blood cells play a huge role in the body's defense against bacteria and viruses. The neutrophil pretty much "eats" those bad organisms that invade your body. Now, your bones are hollow and inside of the bone is what is called the marrow. That's where blood cells grow. If they want a bone marrow sample, they're probably looking to confirm the low count. (My sister has TTP (another rare blood condition) and had to have a bone marrow aspirate/sample. They lie you on your side and use local anesthetic to numb the skin and muscles. They take a very long needle and insert it though the lower back/hip area and into the bone, extracting the marrow through the syringe. You're going to feel pressure when it enters the bone and slight pain when they aspirate the marrow. It doesn't last more than 5 minutes and the pain only occurs when they remove the bone marrow. They may sedate you if you're younger.) Now, I've never known anyone with neutropenia but I can tell you that this isn't a very dangerous condition IF TREATED. Luckily for you, and a lot of other people, medicine has come a really long way and there is some form of treatment for just about anything. Now, because your body is low on neutrophils, your body will have a more difficult time fighting off infection, so one of the treatments could be antibiotics. They also have medications that will help your bone marrow produce more neutrophils. ANOTHER form of treatment is a bone marrow transplant. A doctor would probably only consider this if the patient (you) weren't responding well to the other treatments or any other number of reasons. In this case, they would take a blood sample and compare it first to any family members who would want to donate marrow for you to use. If your blood types matched (along with other factors) they would take bone marrow samples from each of you and make sure they match completely (there are a lot of complicating things when it comes to blood that have to be matched almost perfectly or the person receiving it could have a bad reaction). If they match, the transplant would take place. When it comes to the transplant itself, I can't tell you as most of my knowledge really pertains to the blood/cellular aspect. Whenever you have an appointment, you need to ask your doctor as much as you can, ok? If you have a lot of questions, ask them. They're there to answer any and all questions you have. After all, you may have to live with this for the rest of your life. Just make sure you know what your doctor is going to be doing. And if you don't understand what he's saying, tell him to explain it simply. If you have any more questions, you can always email me, but it's always best that you talk to your doctor.

Question: what is neutropenia in dogs how is it treated can it be cured? my dog's vet said my dog's white blood cell count is low. i want to know what that means any information you can give me will be helpful

Answer: Neutropenia means there is a low white blood cell count specifically neutrophils. These cells are in the blood and are very important in helping to fight infection. It can be the result of three major reasons. One is decreased production in the bone marrow, two if there is a major infection these cells will leave the blood to go fight the infection and three the cells are being destroyed by the body's immune response. It is most commonly associated with a major infection in the body such as a viral infection, or cancer etc. This is a problem because with decrease in these blood cells your dog can be more prone to get sick. Infectious diseases that reduce the neutrophil production in dogs include parvovirus, different bacterial infections, and a tick transmitted disease called Ehrlichia. Certain drugs can cause this problem as well. As well as cancers of the bone marrow. It can also be an inherited condition as well. So whether it can be treated and cured depends on the cause of the neutropenia.

Question: i did a complete blood picture. What is abosulte neutropenia and relative eosinophilia? This is what it said in the comments field.

Answer: neutropenia means reduced in the numbr of a type of white blood cells called neutrophil and the wrd absolute make the meaning is total lack of this cells,which means a failure of their production by the bone marrow,and relative eosinophilia,well it means the number of eosinophil which mainly increase in allergic condition or parasitic infection is relatively high thank u

Question: Does anyone have a child that has neutropenia and if you do could you tell me more about the illness? My 7 month old has it and I really don't understand what it is.

Answer: Neutropenia is a deficiency in white blood cells. There are several types of WBCs. Neutrophils are the ones that fight infections. Therefore, if your baby has this disorder, he/she will be more prone to infections. Keep the child more clean and safe as possible. Of course, I know you will.

Question: Is there anything that can be done to correct Neutropenia? DO you know of any special studies being done at this time? natural medicines anything that works?

Answer: Forgive me if this appears to be a lecture, but I have no knowledge that you know the full facts. There are studies being done on the majority of medical diseases and conditions and when something is discovered, it is reported on and published with all references. Neutropenia is a blood disorder that can affect anyone. Some people are born with it. It can happen after a viral infection. In some cases the cause can be a side effect of a drug, or exposure to certain poisons. People can get neutropenia when treated for cancer with chemotherapy drugs. Sometimes it happens for no known reason. There are several kinds of white cells in the blood. Each has a special function. The most common ones are - Neutrophils which surround and destroy bacteria in your body and Lymphocytes, which are the key part of your body’s immune system, and defend against viruses. A third kind of blood cell, the platelet, helps your blood to clot. The term neutropenia describes the situation where the number of neutrophils in the blood is too low. Neutrophils are very important in defending the body against bacterial infections, and therefore, a patient with too few neutrophils is more susceptible to bacterial infections. People with neutropenia get infections easily and often. Most of the infections occur in the lungs, mouth and throat, sinuses and skin. Painful mouth ulcers, gum infections, ear infections and periodontal disease are common. Severe, life-threatening infections may occur. Often the child or adult must be hospitalized and receive intravenous antibiotics. The duration of the neutropenia may be short lived. In short-lived cases, the patient is described as suffering from acute neutropenia. However, if a patient has neutropenia for a longer period, i.e. greater than three months, the patient is described as suffering from chronic neutropenia. The types are described as Mild, Moderate, Severe, Chronic and Severe Chronic – severe chronic is normally found as a paediatric problem – neutropenia may also be Congenital or Cyclic. There are other types, which I shall not discuss here. The two primary treatments for neutropenia are antibiotics to fight infection and drugs, which help the bone marrow make neutrophils, and Granulocyte Colony-Stimulating Factors. In some cases, a bone marrow transplant may be an option. I add a link with details of this subject, and one for the Neutropenia Support Association Inc: http://www.medicinenet.com/ neutropenia/article.htm http://www.neutropenia.ca/ Hope this helps matador 89

Question: How does Tylenol cause neutropenia? What is the physiological process that makes Tylenol cause neutropenia?

Answer: Take a look at this: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob… also, "Neutropenia" is a condition of an abnormally low number of a type of a particular type of white blood cell called a neutrophil. White blood cells (leukocytes) are the cells in the blood that play important roles in the body's immune by fighting off infection. Because white blood cells can be affected by many diseases, doctors will often check the "white blood cell count" in evaluating health conditions. The normal white blood cells are of different types and include neutrophils, lymphocytes, monocytes, eosinophils, and basophils. The average blood concentration (cells per cubic mm) for each type are: neutrophils (3650); lymphocytes (2500); monocytes (430); eosinophils (150); basophils (30). Neutrophils function by actually killing and eating up microorganisms that invade our bodies. "Neutropenia" is present when the neutophil count is less than 2000. Neutropenia can be present (though it is relatively uncommon) in normal healthy individuals, notably in blacks and Yemenite Jews. Causes of neutropenia from disease can be categorized as resulting from decreased production of white blood cells, destruction of white blood cells after they are produced, or pooling of white blood cells (accumulation of the white blood cells out of the circulation). Diseases causing decreased production of white blood cells include drug toxicity, vitamin deficiencies, and medical diseases such as blood diseases, infections (virus diseases, tuberculosis, typhoid), abnormalities of the bone marrow disorders, or be cyclic (varying in severity week to week, month to month, perhaps related to biorhythms). Destruction of white blood cells can occur as a result of antibodies attacking the cells (such as in Felty's syndrome) or from drugs stimulating the immune system to attack the cells. Pooling of white blood cells occurs with some overwhelming infections, heart-lung bypass during heart surgery, and hemodialysis. There is also an example of a nurse who had a neutropenic patient. Her Nurses Aide did the vitals, and revealed the temp was 101.1 so the aide relayed that info to the nurse. The nurse gave the patient Tylenol for the fever. The fever came down. But the nurse got a call from her manager stating the doctor had a fit because he wasn't called and that the patient could have gone septic and died. Hope these examples help in your studies.

Question: neutropenia and cosmetic surgery? I have chronic idiopathic neutropenia and lmphopenia. I have decided that i want to get a breast enlargement. Will i be able to with my blood? Will the surgeon operate on me for cosmetic reasons whilst neutropenic?

Answer: No ethical surgeon would operate on you.

Question: What do you know about Neutropenia? I was involved in a research study where they took my blood count periodicly through the year. Each time my neutrophil count (part of white blood cells) got lower and lower. He said he hadnt ever seen someone that appears healthy with that low of a count. The dr was amazed that I didnt have reoccuring/unresolved infections and mouth ulcers. He was very concerned and said I should see a hemotologist and get a bone marrow biopsy. (since its unrelated to the study he couldnt help me) I got a new job and insurance is about to kick in...Im pretty nervous about the possibilities.

Answer: Please consult a doctor. If they recommend a bone marrow biopsy, I would go for it. Two months after I was married, I was hospitalized with severe neutropenia and low platelets. It turns out I had aplastic anemia and almost died. You can read my story on: http://cbs11tv.com/health/local_story_10… I was healthy with no mouth ulcers or any other symptoms except tired all the time. I pray that this is only a scare for you and that all will turn out well.

Question: What is neutropenia and leukopenia and why do you get it? What is the cause of it? Can it be prevented?

Answer: Neutropenia is a hematological disorder characterized by an abnormally low number of neutrophil granulocytes (a type of white blood cell). Leukopenia or leukocytopenia refers to a decrease in the number of circulating white blood cells (leukocytes) in the blood. For very detailed information on each visit the links below.

Question: What is chronicidiopathic neutropenia? This may not relate, because I don't even know what that is, but if you have a lump tht doesnt grow, can it still be cancer, and if not what can it be??

Answer: I don't know, but I had neutropenia while I was on chemo and I was in the hospital for 8 days. After that, I had to take Arancept and Neulasta shots. Best wishes to you though!