WHITE BLOOD CELL COUNTS IN PATIENTS UNDERGOING ABDOMINAL SURGERY
- 1 June 1996
- journal article
- Published by Wiley in Anz Journal of Surgery
- Vol. 66 (6), 369-371
- https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1445-2197.1996.tb01213.x
Abstract
Background: The role of pre-operative white blood cell counts (WBCC) in patients with an acute abdomen is contentious. Methods: This study documents the association between pre-operative WBCC and the extent of intraperitoneal inflammation at the time of surgery in a heterogeneous group of 1166 patients undergoing abdominal surgery. Results: WBCC failed to adequately discriminate between groups of patients with varying degrees of intraperitoneal inflammation. For example, only 31% (37/118) of the patients with either free pus or an abscess within the peritoneal cavity had a WBCC > 15.0 × 109/L. Conclusions: There is a need to replace the WBCC with more powerful predictors of inflammation within the peritoneal cavity.Keywords
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