Common questions

What do white blood cells in your stool mean?

What do white blood cells in your stool mean?

A positive result means white blood cells (leukocytes) were found in your stool sample. If you or your child’s results show leukocytes in stool, it means there is some kind of inflammation in the digestive tract. The more leukocytes that are found, the higher the chance that you or your child has a bacterial infection.

How do you treat white blood cells?

Possible treatments include:

  1. Antibiotics: Used to treat and prevent related infections.
  2. Colony-stimulating factors (CSF) or growth factors: Medications that can stimulate white blood cell production in the bone marrow.
  3. Stem cell transplantation: Can be used for curative therapy in some cases.

How do you treat no white blood cells?

If you have a low white blood cell count, your doctor can prescribe medicines to help stimulate your immune system after each round of chemotherapy. Your doctor also may decide to stop your chemotherapy treatment for a little while so your body can recover and make more white blood cells.

What happens if your white blood cells are high?

A high white blood cell count may indicate that the immune system is working to destroy an infection. It may also be a sign of physical or emotional stress. People with particular blood cancers may also have high white blood cells counts.

What does fecal leukocytes test for?

The presence of fecal leukocytes indicates bowel mucosal inflammation, which occurs in invasive bacterial enteritis and ulcerative colitis. The sensitivity of the fecal leukocyte test is approximately 70% for diarrheal disease caused by Shigella, but lower for other bacterial pathogens.

What can show up in poo sample?

The stool may be examined for hidden (occult) blood, fat, meat fibers, bile, white blood cells, and sugars called reducing substances. The pH of the stool also may be measured. A stool culture is done to find out if bacteria may be causing an infection.

What to do if you have white blood cells in your stool?

Collect and store the stool in a special container given to you by your health care provider or a lab. You may get a device or applicator to help you collect the sample. Make sure no urine, toilet water, or toilet paper mixes in with the sample.

When do you need a white blood cell test?

A white blood cell in stool test is most often used to find out the cause of severe diarrhea that’s lasted for more than four days. Why do I need a white blood cell in stool test?

What does it mean when you have a bloody stool?

Blood in the stool means there is bleeding somewhere in your digestive tract. Sometimes the amount of blood is so small that it can only be detected by a fecal occult test (which checks for hidden blood in the stool).

Why do I have so many leukocytes in my stool?

Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) It can cause disruption to daily activities because of frequent bouts of diarrhea or liquid stool, mucus in stool, thin narrow stool, pain, and fatigue. The presence of leukocytes in your stool can help doctors determine if you have ulcerative colitis or another type of infection.

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