Could a stomach bug cause elevation in WBC count?
The following is an actual conversation between an iCliniq user and a doctor that has been reviewed and published as a Premium Q&A.
The following is an actual conversation between an iCliniq user and a doctor that has been reviewed and published as a Premium Q&A.
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Patient's Query
Hi doctor,
I am 9 weeks pregnant. Two days back, I got some sort of a stomach bug or food poisoning. I woke up with nausea, chills, diarrhea and vomiting. But, there was no fever. Since I could not keep fluids down, I went to the emergency room to avoid dehydration. I got two IVs and Zofran. I felt better after few hours. Upon discharge, the doctor mentioned that I had an elevated white blood cell count when I first came. The next day I felt completely normal as I do until today. I followed up with my obstetrician as instructed and she noticed the WBC count and said that it was concerning. She made me repeat the test. I am much worried and awaiting for the results is a torture. Now I am going out of my mind thinking whether I have leukemia, lymphoma or some other. Moreover, when I went through the results I noticed neutrophil count is high and lymphocyte count is low. Could a stomach bug, it did seem a lot like it, cause such an elevation? Can you review my blood work results to see if there is anything that would indicate something more sinister than an infection?
Hi,
Welcome to icliniq.com. Raised WBC (white blood cell) count does not signify leukemia in all cases. Your WBC is raised with neutrophilia that signifies that you simply had an infection and that is why your doctor got worried. There is no evidence of leukemia in the report suggested. Your history and the investigations suggest that you had an abdominal infection and the result of which there was vomiting, stomach upset and raised WBC count. Now, if you have any fever or persisting symptoms then your doctor would treat you with antibiotics else no intervention is required. These counts would go back to normal range within 5 days once the infection settles. This is not at all a symptom or a report suggestive of leukemia.
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