Neutrophilia

Neutrophilia (or neutrophil leukocytosis) is a condition where a person has a high number of neutrophils in their blood.

Neutrophils are the primary white blood cells that respond to a bacterial infection, so the most common cause of marked neutrophilia is a bacterial infection.

Neutrophils are also increased in any acute inflammation[?], so will be raised after a heart attack or other infarct[?].

As well as increasing in number, neutrophils also show other changes in infection and inflammation. The neutrophils tend to be younger, as they are being released more quickly, this is called a left shift. The NAP score, (the amount of neutrophil alkaline phosphatase per neutrophil) will increase. In a severe infection, toxic granulation changes happen to the neutrophils.

Drugs, such as prednisone[?], have the same effect as cortisol[?], causing marginated neutrophils to enter the blood stream. Nervousness will very slightly raise the neutrophil count because of this effect.

A neutrophilia might also be the result of a malignancy. CML[?] (or chronic myeloid leukaemia) is a disease where the blood cells proliferate out of control. These cells may be neutrophils.