Dr. Goswami Parth Rajendragiri
Pathology
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Patient's Query
Hello doctor,
I underwent a blood test, and my WBC count was 16.13 but the five main white blood cell counts were normal. How can the component count be normal when the WBC count increases? I take Metformin once a day and have taken two steroid injections five days before the blood test was done. I was also diagnosed with UTI. I am not convinced with the reason that UTI and steroids can alter the levels. Kindly help.
Thank you.
Hello,
Welcome to icliniq.com.
I can understand your concern.
The rise in the levels of WBC (white blood cells) is due to steroid shots and UTI (urinary tract infection). In UTI, along with an increased count of WBC, high levels of neutrophils can be present. The increase in the count of neutrophils is because of steroid shots. Steroid drug leads to decreased extravasation of WBC into tissues and hence in blood, the total WBC count increases. I advise you to repeat the complete blood profile in a week to evaluate the values.
I hope this information will help you.
Thank you.
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Pathology
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