Low white blood cell count in teenager

Your blood is made up of red blood cells, white blood cells, platelets, and plasma.

Your white blood cells account for only about 1% of your blood, but their impact is big. White blood cells are also called leukocytes. They protect you against illness and disease.

Think of white blood cells as your immunity cells. In a sense, they are always at war. They flow through your bloodstream to fight viruses, bacteria, and other foreign invaders that threaten your health. When your body is in distress and a particular area is under attack, white blood cells rush in to help destroy the harmful substance and prevent illness.

White blood cells are made in the bone marrow. They are stored in your blood and lymph tissues. Because some white blood cells called neutrophils have a short life less than a day, your bone marrow is always making them.

Types of white blood cells

Among your white blood cells are:

Monocytes. They have a longer lifespan than many white blood cells and help to break down bacteria.
Lymphocytes. They create antibodies to fight against bacteria, viruses, and other potentially harmful invaders.
Neutrophils. They kill and digest bacteria and fungi. They are the most numerous type of white blood cell and your first line of defense when infection strikes.
Basophils. These small cells seem to sound an alarm when infectious agents invade your blood. They secrete chemicals such as histamine, a marker of allergic disease, that help control the body's immune response.
Eosinophils. They attack and kill parasites and cancer cells, and help with allergic responses.

Problems affecting white blood cells

Your white blood cell count can be low for a number of reasons. This includes when something is destroying the cells more quickly than the body can replenish them. Or when the bone marrow stops making enough white blood cells to keep you healthy. When your white blood cell count is low, you are at great risk for any illness or infection, which can spiral into a serious health threat.

Your healthcare provider can do a blood test to see whether your white blood cell count is normal. If your count is too low or too high, you may have a white blood cell disorder.

A number of diseases and conditions may affect white blood cell levels:

Weak immune system. This is often caused by illnesses such as HIV/AIDS or by cancer treatment. Cancer treatments such as chemotherapy or radiation therapy can destroy white blood cells and leave you at risk for infection.
Infection. A higher-than-normal white blood cell count usually means you have some type of infection. White blood cells are multiplying to destroy the bacteria or virus.
Myelodysplastic syndrome. This condition causes abnormal production of blood cells. This includes white blood cells in the bone marrow.
Cancer of the blood. Cancers including leukemia and lymphoma can cause uncontrolled growth of an abnormal type of blood cell in the bone marrow. This results in a greatly increased risk for infection or serious bleeding.
Myeloproliferative disorder. This disorder refers to various conditions that trigger the excessive production of immature blood cells. This can result in an unhealthy balance of all types of blood cells in the bone marrow and too many or too few white blood cells in the blood.
Medicines. Some medicines can raise or lower the body's white blood cell count.

Conditions such as extreme physical stress caused by an injury or emotional stress can also trigger high white blood cell levels. So can inflammation, labor or the end of pregnancy, smoking, or even extreme exercise.

Overview

What is low white blood cell count (leukopenia)?

Every day, our bodies produce about 100 billion white blood cells (leukocytes). Leukocytes help defend our bodies against intruders like viruses and bacteria that may cause infections.

In leukopenia (pronounced “luke-a-PEE-ne-ah”), you have lower-than-normal numbers of white blood cells. Specifically, you have fewer neutrophils than normal.

Neutrophils are white blood cells that act as your immune system’s first line of defense. Without enough white blood cells, including enough neutrophils, you’re more vulnerable to developing infections.

A white blood cell count that’s less than 4,000 cells per microliter of blood is a low white blood cell count. Normal white blood cell counts vary depending on age and sex. For example, the white blood cell count for men, people designated male at birth and children is 5,000 to 10,000 cells per microliter of blood. The normal range for women and people designated female at birth is 4,500 to 11,000 microliters of blood.

Is leukopenia a kind of cancer?

No, it’s not but there’s a connection between leukopenia and cancer. Cancer treatments may cause leukopenia.

Does leukopenia lead to leukemia?

No, but leukemia may cause leukopenia. Leukemia affects your blood cells, including white blood cells. Your bone marrow makes blood cells.

In leukemia, your body makes abnormal blood cells that multiply and divide. The abnormal cells eventually outnumber healthy cells, including healthy white blood cells. That leaves your body with lower-than-normal levels of white blood cells or leukopenia.

Who is affected by low white blood cell count (leukopenia)?

Your white blood cell counts frequently rise and fall. Leukopenia happens when the number of white blood cells in your blood drops and doesn’t rise. People with certain medical conditions or receiving cancer treatments often have leukopenia.

Symptoms and Causes

What causes leukopenia?

People may develop leukopenia because they have certain medical conditions, take certain medications or have malnutrition and/or don’t get enough of certain vitamins. Medical conditions include:

Bone marrow disorders: Multiple myeloma and aplastic anemia are examples of bone marrow disorders that cause leukopenia.
Autoimmune diseases: Autoimmune diseases happen when your immune system attacks your body. Lupus and rheumatoid arthritis are examples of autoimmune diseases.
Infections: Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) may cause leukopenia.

What are leukopenia symptoms?

Leukopenia doesn’t have symptoms but it can cause infections that have the following symptoms:

Fever and chills.
Swelling and redness.
Mouth sores.
Red or white patches in your mouth.
Sore throat.
Severe cough or shortness of breath.
Painful urination or pee that smells bad.
Diarrhea.
Cuts or sores that drain pus.
Unusual vaginal discharge or itching.

Diagnosis and Tests

How do healthcare providers diagnose leukopenia?

Healthcare providers diagnose leukopenia by doing complete blood counts (CBCs). They may do additional tests if they think you may have an infection. Those tests may include:

Urine tests: These tests may help healthcare providers determine what’s causing your infection.
Chest X-ray: They may order this test if they think you have pneumonia.

Management and Treatment

How do healthcare providers treat leukopenia?

Healthcare providers treat the underlying cause. For example, if you have leukopenia because you have an infection, they may use antibiotics or antiviral drugs to fight the infection. Other treatments may include:

Growth factors: These drugs encourage your bone marrow to make more blood cells. In this case, growth factor medication may boost white blood cell production.
Delaying chemotherapy: If you’re receiving chemotherapy for cancer, your healthcare provider may recommend delaying treatment until your white blood cell count increases.

Prevention

What can I do to prevent leukopenia?

You may not be able to avoid leukopenia. However, taking care of your overall health and avoiding infection are good ways to reduce your risk. Some suggestions include:

Wash your hands frequently with soap and water, or use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer.
Stay up-to-date on all vaccines, including shots for the flu and COVID-19.
Avoid people who are sick or crowds where you might come into close contact with people who are sick.
Avoid injuries like scrapes, tears or cuts (including tattoos and piercings), and care for wounds immediately if your skin is damaged.
Prevent the spread of germs by washing fruits and vegetables, keeping meats away from other foods, preparing meals in a clean kitchen and cooking foods to the proper temperature.
Don’t share utensils, cups, food or drinks with others.
Don’t share towels, razors or toothbrushes with others.
Wear gloves if you’re gardening or working in the yard.
Avoid picking up pet waste or changing a newborn’s diaper. (If you can’t avoid these tasks, wear gloves and wash your hands when you’re done.)
Avoid lakes, ponds, rivers and hot tubs.
Be sure to take the medication your healthcare provider prescribed that will help prevent infections.

Outlook / Prognosis

What can I expect if I have leukopenia?

Your prognosis, or expected outcome, depends on why you have leukopenia. For example, you may have leukopenia because you have a viral infection. In that case, your white blood cell count should return to normal once you’re over your infection. If your white blood cell count is low because you’re receiving cancer treatment, your prognosis depends on your cancer diagnosis and treatment.

Living With

When should I contact my healthcare provider?

Leukopenia increases your risk of developing infections, so you should contact your healthcare provider if you have leukopenia and think you may have an infection.

A note from Cleveland Clinic

Leukopenia happens when your white blood cell levels are lower than normal. There are many reasons why your white blood cell level may drop. For example, you may be receiving life-saving cancer treatment that lowers your white blood cell levels. You may have an autoimmune disorder like lupus. If you have leukopenia, you’re at risk of infections. If you know you have leukopenia, talk to your healthcare provider about ways to fend off infections.

Should I be worried about low white blood cell count?

The main risk of an abnormally low white blood cell count is how vulnerable it may make a person to infection. Without an adequate white blood cell response available to fight infection, the body is at greater risk that any infection (including those usually regarded as minor) may cause serious illness or death.

What can cause low white blood cell count in a child?

When the white blood cell count is low. Neutropenia is the general term for low numbers of neutrophils in the blood. It may be congenital (due to genetic causes) or acquired (caused by medications/drugs, toxins, viruses, or attacks from the child's own immune system).

How do you treat low white blood cells in children?

correcting the neutropenia through: injections of granulocyte colony-stimulating growth factor (G-CSF) to push the bone marrow to make more neutrophils. steroid medicines to stop the body's immune system from attacking the neutrophils. white blood cell transfusions to give the child more infection-fighting cells.