Question

25 year old man presents to the office with a cc of left arm pain and generalized malaise of 1 week duration following a dirt bike incident. Laceration of skin on dorsum of left forearm with erythema, edema, and the presence of purulent discharge from the wound. If this patient’s WBC differential was taken, which cell would likely be elevated and why

Answer 1

Neutrophils would likely be elevated in the WBC differential due to their role in fighting bacterial infections, as indicated by the symptoms of erythema, edema, and purulent discharge at the wound site.

Step-by-step explanation:

If the 25-year old man's white blood cell (WBC) differential was taken, the cell type that would likely be elevated is the neutrophil. Neutrophils are a type of leukocyte (white blood cell) that are typically the first responders to sites of infection and are a key component of the innate immune system. Their primary role is to ingest and destroy pathogens through a process called phagocytosis. The presence of erythema (redness), edema (swelling), and purulent discharge (pus) indicates that there is an infection at the site of the laceration. The body responds to such infections by increasing the production of neutrophils to fight off the invading microbes.