Answer to Question #165457 in Biology for Adnan Hussain

Question

 You come across a patient who is suffering from severe fever and flu. The person comes from a vicinity affected by COVID-19. Blood sample is taken from the patient and analyzed for a complete blood picture. The result shows an elevated level of neutrophiles in the blood. Based on this result only, is this patient suffering from COVID-19 or not? Support your answer with reasons.

Answer 1

Neutrophils fight infections in the body. A high neutrophil count may be due to many physiological conditions and diseases. However, in most cases, high neutrophils count is commonly associated with an active bacterial infection in the body. Although COVID-19 could induce bacterial inflammation (i.e., pneumonia), neutrophils count is not enough to confirm the presence of the COVID-19 infection.