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Dr. Andrew Rynne
MD
Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

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Is WBC Being 21 In A Toddler A Cause For Concern?

My 16 months old son had a blood work 2 days ago and it came back that his wbc is 21. He is teething but he has had no fever in these days. He cried tremendously too much during the time the doctor was extracted him the blood for the blood test. What do you think it is? And what do you recommend?
Mon, 15 Feb 2016
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General & Family Physician,  's  Response
HI, thanks for using healthcare magic

The normal white cell count for his age is up to 14 approximately so his value of 21 is very high.
Crying during blood letting would not affect the reading at all.

Very high WBC are usually indicative of infection so his doctor may need to review him completely to determine the site of infection even without the presence of a fever.
He would need examination and possibly urine analysis to rule out urinary tract infections.

The WBC would also need repeating at some point.

I hope this helps
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Is WBC Being 21 In A Toddler A Cause For Concern?

HI, thanks for using healthcare magic The normal white cell count for his age is up to 14 approximately so his value of 21 is very high. Crying during blood letting would not affect the reading at all. Very high WBC are usually indicative of infection so his doctor may need to review him completely to determine the site of infection even without the presence of a fever. He would need examination and possibly urine analysis to rule out urinary tract infections. The WBC would also need repeating at some point. I hope this helps