Signs of which are elevated lymphocytes in an adult

Lymphocytes are a constituent of blood. They take part in protecting the body from the effects of viruses and bacteria. The fact is that lymphocytes have a unique ability to detect the presence of a foreign protein.

Sometimes it happens that a high content of this element is found in the blood test. If lymphocytes are increased , it is a signal that pathogens are present in the body . But the cause of an elevated level is not always infectious diseases. Often, everything turns out to be more serious. Sometimes, increased lymphocytes in an adult can be detected in the case of chronic lymphocytic leukemia.

Norm

Often people have a question, and how many of these elements in the blood are considered normal? To begin with, it is necessary to take into account the fact that their level undergoes significant changes in the process of human life. For example, if the lymphocytes in children under the age of 4 are 45-65%, then by 5-7 years the norm is already 30-35%. For an adult, a level of 25-40% is considered normal.

Abnormalities can be a signal of a serious illness

When the doctor, when studying the patient's general blood test , sees that the patient has significantly increased the level of lymphocytes, the first task to be decided by a specialist is to find out what causes these changes, whether they are reactive, whether this indicates that the increase is the body's response To external influences or whether these are malignant changes. In the medical literature, there are two types of lymphocytosis: reactive and malignant.

In the first case, the increased lymphocytes in an adult signal about the ingress of viruses or pathogens into the body that triggered the onset of a disease. As a rule, after excluding the pathogenic effect of the virus and complete recovery within 2-3 months, the amount of this element in the blood comes back to normal.

In the second case, when it comes to malignant lymphocytosis, the situation does not look so harmless, since this organism signals the beginning of the process of an independent lymphoproliferative disease, the most dangerous form of which can be acute or chronic leukemia.

From these examples it is clear that increased lymphocytes in an adult or child can become a signal of the presence in the body of both a minor, non-life-threatening infection, and a very serious disease. The main problem is that, according to a general blood test, even an experienced specialist is not able to determine with 100% certainty for what reason there are increased lymphocytes in an adult: whether it is a conventional reactive lymphocytosis or whether he is dealing with a malignant Form of the disorder.

In order for the doctor to determine what caused the increase in lymphocytes, he needs to make the patient an appointment for additional, more complex and expensive tests that can determine the presence of chromosomal abnormalities in the nuclei, if any, and in the early stages begin to fight the serious disease, Life-threatening patient.