Febrile neutropenia in nonmalignant conditions: tertiary center experience

Abstract

Background Neutrophils play an important role in immunity of the body because they attack and kill the invading microorganisms. The clinical sequelae of neutropenia usually manifest as infections, most commonly of the mucous membranes. The risk of serious infection increases as the absolute neutrophililc count falls to the severely neutropenic range (<500/μl). Patients and methods A retrospective study was conducted on patients admitted to Haematology Unit and Intermediate Care Unit at Assiut University Children Hospital during the period from April 1, 2018 to March 31, 2019 (1-year study). Data were collected and compared with guidelines. Results Among 50 patients, males were 44% and females were 56%. All patients enrolled in this study were neutropenic and had fever. Patients having neutropenia due to aplastic anemia were 92%, patients having oral mucosal lesions were 56%, and patients having fever of unknown origin were 44%. Conclusion Aplastic anemia is the most common cause of nonmalignant febrile neutropenia. Neutropenia leads to severe infections. Granulocyte colony-stimulating factor can be used in treatment of neutropenia. Bone marrow transplant can cure this disorder.