Eosinophilia corresponds to an increase in the number of circulating eosinophils in the blood, with a blood formula count higher than the reference value, which is usually between 0 and 500 eosinophils per L blood.This is very common in response to parasitic infections or allergies.but it can also be due to serious diseases that affect blood cells, such as lymphomas, for example.
Eosinophils are cells derived from myeloblast, which is a cell produced by the bone marrow, whose main function is to defend the organism from infectious agents.Although important for the proper functioning of the immune system, eosinophils are less concentrated in the blood than other cells.responsible for the defense of the body. Learn more about eosinophils.
- Eosinophilia usually does not cause signs or symptoms.
- It is perceived only by performing a complete blood count.
- In which a change in the relative and absolute amount of eosinophils Eosinophilia can be classified according to its severity by:.
The higher the number of eosinophils identified in the blood test, the more severe the disease will be and it is important to analyze the other laboratory parameters requested by your doctor to reach a diagnostic conclusion and initiate appropriate treatment.
When only the amount of eosinophils in the blood formula is changed and no other tests have been performed, it may be recommended to repeat the test to see if eosinophilia persists; otherwise, it is not taken into account.
The main causes of eosinophilia are
Parasite infection is a major cause of eosinophilia, especially when parasites perform part of their life cycle in the lungs, such as Ascaris lumbricoides, Necator americanus, 1stancytoma duodenal and Strongyloides stercoralis; these parasites cause intense eosinophilia and pulmonary infiltrates, characterizing Loeffler.syndrome, in which there may be a dry cough and progressive shortness of breath due to the large number of eosinophils in the lungs.
Find out how to identify Loeffler syndrome.
What to do: If infection with parasites is suspected, it is recommended, in addition to the complete blood count, to carry out a parasitological examination of the stool and a blood PCR measurement. In addition, your doctor may recommend that you perform chest x-rays to check for pulmonary infiltrates. When confirming the infection, the doctor recommends treatment with antiparasitic drugs depending on the parasite causing the disease, and it is important that the treatment is continued until the end, even if there are no symptoms, to avoid disease recurrence and complications.
Eosinophilia is also very common as a result of allergic reactions, which may be respiratory, contact, food or medicinal, with the release of its contents to the extracellular environment in an attempt to combat the agent responsible for allergy.
What to do: It is recommended to take measures to combat allergies, such as avoiding contact with the substance that causes allergy, in addition to antihistamine remedies, which help relieve allergy symptoms, in some cases when the allergy does not go away even with antihistamines, corticosteroids may be recommended.In addition, it is important to consult an algaelogist so that the treatment can be more specific.
In some cases, in addition to the blood formula, the dosage of immunoglobulin E, or IgE, which is a protein present in low blood concentrations but which has a higher number of allergies, may also be requested.Learn more about IgE.
Some skin diseases can also cause an increase in the number of eosinophils, such as pemphigus, granulomatous dermatitis, and eosinophilic fasciitis.In most cases, skin diseases can be identified with red or white spots on the skin that may or may not be flaky, causing pain or scratches.
What to do: If there is a sign of a skin change, it is recommended that the person consult a dermatologist so that this change can be studied and, therefore, that appropriate treatment can be started.
Hodgkin’s lymphoma is a type of cancer that affects lymphocytes, which are the body’s main defense cells, with water on the palate, no apparent weight loss, weight loss, body-wide itching and persistent high fever.
In this type of lymphoma, there is a sharp decrease in the amount of lymphocytes, called lymphopenia, and to reconstruct the person’s immune system there is a greater production of eosinophils, characterizing eosinophilia.
Learn to recognize the symptoms of Hodgkin’s lymphoma
What to do: In these cases, it is very important that the person follows the treatment following the oncologist’s instructions, with most of the time necessary to undergo chemotherapy and radiation therapy, in some cases a bone marrow transplant may be necessary to try to restore normal blood cell production.