When analyzing blood, it can be determined that the stab neutrophils are elevated. What does this mean for an adult, and is it worth worrying about?
What is a stab neutrophil?
First, you need to understand what the rod-shaped neutrophils are. The largest group of leukocytes is just neutrophils, which protect the body from various bacteria and fungi. They penetrate body tissues and destroy pathogenic microorganisms, after which they die. Moreover, these blood cells have several stages of development. The rod-shaped form is immature neutrophils, which are released into the blood when any infections appear in the body. In the blood of an adult completely healthy person they contain no more than 6% of the total number of leukocytes. They can be in the blood from 5 hours to two days, and then penetrate into the tissues of the organs and carry out protection.
The main task of neutrophils is to find and destroy bacteria by phagocytosis, that is, absorption. After the destruction of bacteria and harmful microorganisms by their enzymes, the blood cells die and disintegrate. In the places of their work, softening of surrounding tissues occurs and a purulent focus is formed. It basically consists of neutrophils and the products of its decay. When an acute infectious disease occurs, the number of them rapidly increases.
The content of blood cells in the blood can decrease or, conversely, increase. Raising them is called neutrophilia. If the analysis shows that the adult has increased stab neutrophils, then we can talk about the presence of bacterial infection or purulent inflammation.
Stab neutrophils are increased - the causes
What does it mean if the stab neutrophils are raised? This can mean only one thing: in the body there is an infection with which blood cells actively fight. This process can be caused by the following diseases:
- pneumonia;
- otitis;
- rheumatism;
- gout ;
- nephritis;
- dermatitis;
- after surgical operations;
- sensitivity to medicines;
- diabetes;
- anemia;
- exposure to high or low temperatures;
- injuries;
- benign or malignant tumors;
- burns;
- pregnancy.
If in the blood test the stab neutrophils are elevated, it can speak of the consequences of severe blood loss or high physical loads of the body. The change in the number of such an indicator can also occur against the background of emotional overexcitation.
The increase in stab neutrophils in an adult can also be with purulent diseases, for example, abscesses and phlegmon. Rarely, but still there are cases when the increase in stab neutrophils in the blood occurs as a result of:
- tumors of the stomach, pancreas;
- myocardial infarction ;
- stroke;
- trophic ulcers;
- skin diseases;
- accumulations of carbon dioxide.
The increase in blood cells may occur due to the use of certain medications, for example, heparin,
The accumulation of neutrophils is also observed in the areas of edema, as well as in tissues where there is oxygen starvation, for example, inflamed tissues.
With a detailed blood test and determining the causes of the appearance of a large number of blood cells, it is very important for the doctor to give full information about health and transferred diseases.
In any case, an increase in stab neutrophils indicates the active work of this type of leukocytes, which destroy viruses and bacteria.