⚠BAND NEUTROPHILS. TO COUNT OR NOT TO COUNT?! After the introduction of new automated methods for determining immature granulocytes (IG), many central laboratories stopped determining band neutrophils to avoid unnecessary microscopy of blood smears. This optimized the number of doctors in the laboratory, reducing the number of vacancies. 🔬But the fashion for counting band neutrophils is returning! ✅Recent data have once again drawn attention to band neutrophils as a reliable predictor of patient severity. 👉An American blog published a popular science article, which presents the following arguments in favor of manual microscopy of blood smears with the determination of band neutrophil levels: ❗A band neutrophil count exceeding 10% is one of the criteria for Systemic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (SIRS) from the American College of Chest Physicians / Society of Critical Care Medicine, used for the diagnosis of sepsis. Chakraborty R. K., Burns B. Systemic inflammatory response syndrome. – 2019. ❗In a 2012 study, band neutrophils were counted in all patients with normal white blood cell counts. This cohort study showed that patients with normal white blood cell counts but moderate (11–18%) or high (> 20%) band neutrophil counts had increased chances of a positive blood culture and in-hospital death. Drees M, Kanapathippillai N, Zubrow MT. Bandemia with normal white blood cell counts associated with infection. Am J Med. 2012 Nov;125(11).
❗A study conducted in 2019 showed an increased risk of death with increasing levels of band neutrophils in a blood smear, regardless of the white blood cell count. Source: S. Davis, R. Shesser, K. Authelet, A. Pourmand. “Bandemia” without leukocytosis: A potential Emergency Department diagnostic pitfall. The American Journal of Emergency Medicine,Volume 37, Issue 10, 2019 ❓DOES YOUR LABORATORY COUNT BAND NEUTROPHILS?
