Increase in neutrophils
Reading File
Finding Sources
Searching PubMed
neutrophilia AND diagnosis
Searching the Web
neutrophilia causes evaluation Merck Manual professional
An increase in neutrophils is called neutrophilia. Neutrophils are white blood cells that commonly rise when the body is reacting to stress or inflammation.
Common causes
- Acute bacterial infection or inflammation
- Physical stress: surgery, trauma, burns, severe exercise, seizures
- Emotional stress or smoking
- Medicines, especially corticosteroids, lithium, adrenaline-type drugs, or G-CSF injections
- Tissue injury, for example heart attack
- Chronic inflammatory disorders
- Less commonly, bone-marrow disorders such as chronic myeloid leukemia or other myeloproliferative neoplasms
It should be interpreted using the absolute neutrophil count (ANC), not only the percentage of neutrophils. The usual adult cutoff is roughly >7.5 × 10⁹/L (or >7,500/µL), but the laboratory reference range matters.
What to do
- Review symptoms and recent illness, stress, smoking, and medications.
- A clinician may repeat a CBC with differential and review a peripheral blood smear if the elevation persists.
- Seek prompt assessment if there is high fever, severe illness, unexplained weight loss, night sweats, easy bruising, enlarged lymph nodes/spleen, or a very high/persistent white-cell count.
A raised neutrophil count is often temporary and reactive, particularly during infection. If you share the CBC values, including total WBC, neutrophil percentage, ANC, and any symptoms, I can help interpret the pattern.
This is a shared conversation. Sign in to Orris to start your own chat.