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fecal leukocytes
Indications:
- evaluation of diarrhea
Clinical significance:
fecal leukocytes are generally present with:
1) invasive intestinal bacterial infection
a) Salmonella
b) Shigella
c) Yersinia
d) invasive E. coli
2) Entamoeba histolytica
3) inflammatory processes
-> ulcerative colitis
4) antibiotic-associated colitis (occasional)
fecal leukocytes are generally absent with:
1) diarrhea secondary to viruses
2) diarrhea secondary to toxigenic bacteria
a) Staphylococcus
b) E. coli
c) Clostridium perfringens
d) Vibrio cholera
3) parasites
a) Giardia
b) Entamoeba
Related
feces (stool)
leukocyte (white blood cell)
Specific
eosinophils in stool
lymphocytes in stool
neutrophils in stool
General
clinical microbiology test
References
- Clinical Diagnosis & Management by Laboratory Methods,
19th edition, J.B. Henry (ed), W.B. Saunders Co., Philadelphia,
PA. 1996, pg 532-33
- Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine, 13th ed.
Isselbacher et al (eds), McGraw-Hill Inc. NY, 1994, pg 531