The key difference between neutropenia and agranulocytosis is that neutropenia is when a person has a low level of neutrophils in their circulating blood, while agranulocytosis is when a person has low levels of granulocytes, including neutrophils, basophils, and eosinophils in their circulating blood.
Neutropenia and agranulocytosis are two medical conditions due to low levels of certain white blood cells. Granulocytes are a type of white blood cell that has small granules in them. The three specific types of granulocytes in humans are neutrophils, eosinophils, and basophils. Sometimes, agranulocytosis is referred to as a severe form of neutropenia, as in this condition, the neutrophil level goes down below 100 cells per microlitre of blood.
CONTENTS
1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is Neutropenia
3. What is Agranulocytosis
4. Similarities – Neutropenia and Agranulocytosis
5. Neutropenia vs. Agranulocytosis in Tabular Form
6. Summary – Neutropenia vs Agranulocytosis
What is Neutropenia?
Neutrophils are white blood cells that fight infection by destroying harmful bacteria and fungi (yeast) that invade the human body. Neutrophils are made in the bone marrow. Neutropenia is a medical condition that occurs when a person has a low level of neutrophils. In this condition, the neutrophils level drops to about 1,500 neutrophils per microliter of blood. Neutropenia can be caused by genetic conditions, infections, cancer, medications (chemotherapy and radiation therapy), nutritional deficiencies (vitamin B12 deficiency, folate, and copper deficiency), and autoimmune deficiency. Moreover, this condition can have symptoms such as fever, fatigue, sore throat, swollen lymph nodes, ulcers in the mouth, pain, swelling and rash at an infection site, diarrhoea, burning with urination, and urinary urgency or frequency.
Figure 01: Neutropenia
Neutropenia can be diagnosed through physical examinations, complete blood count, and bone marrow sampling. Furthermore, neutropenia can be treated by giving antibiotics, corticosteroids, and granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF).
What is Agranulocytosis?
Agranulocytosis is a medical condition when a person has low levels of granulocytes, such as neutrophils, basophils, and eosinophils, in the blood. In this condition, the neutrophils level goes down blow 100 cells per microlitre of blood, which is lower than the level in neutropenia. In agranulocytosis, neutrophils, basophils, and eosinophils drop below 200 cells/mm3 of blood. Agranulocytosis is caused by certain drugs such as antiepileptics, antibiotics, antithyroid drugs, H2 blockers, cytotoxic drugs, antidepressants, antipsychotics, genetic conditions, cocaine usage, autoimmune disorders, cancers, chemotherapy, infections, and poor nutrition. The symptoms of this condition may include fever and chills, faster heart rate and breathing, muscle weakness, sore throat, sores in the mouth, hypotension, and passing out.
Moreover, agranulocytosis can be diagnosed through complete blood tests, bone marrow biopsy, and skin biopsy. Furthermore, the treatment options for agranulocytosis are antibiotics, granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF), immunosuppressants, and bone marrow transplant.
What are the Similarities Between Neutropenia and Agranulocytosis?
- Neutropenia and agranulocytosis are two medical conditions due to low levels of certain white blood cells.
- Agranulocytosis is referred to as a severe form of neutropenia.
- Both conditions cause low levels of neutrophils in the blood.
- These conditions can increase the risk of infections.
- Both conditions can be diagnosed through complete blood tests and bone marrow biopsy.
- They can be treated through medications such as antibiotics, granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF), etc.
What is the Difference Between Neutropenia and Agranulocytosis?
Neutropenia is when a person has a low level of neutrophils in their circulating blood, while agranulocytosis is when a person has low levels of granulocytes such as neutrophils, basophils, and eosinophils in their circulating blood. Thus, this is the key difference between neutropenia and agranulocytosis. Furthermore, in neutropenia, the neutrophil level goes below 1500 cells per microlitre of blood, while in agranulocytosis, the neutrophil level goes below 100 cells per microlitre of blood.
The infographic below presents the differences between neutropenia and agranulocytosis in tabular form for side by side comparison.
Summary – Neutropenia vs. Agranulocytosis
White blood cells are a part of the immune system of the body. These white blood cells help the body fight infections and other diseases. The white blood cells in the human body include granulocytes (neutrophils, eosinophils, and basophils), monocytes, and lymphocytes (T cells and B cells). Neutropenia and agranulocytosis are two medical conditions due to low levels of certain white blood cells. In neutropenia, people have a low level of a granulocyte called neutrophils, while in agranulocytosis, people have low levels of all granulocytes, such as neutrophils, basophils, and eosinophils. So, this summarizes the difference between neutropenia and agranulocytosis.
Reference:
1. “Neutropenia: What It Is, Types, Symptoms & Causes.” Cleveland Clinic.
2. “What to Know about Agranulocytosis.” WebMD.
Image Courtesy:
1. “Neutropenia” By Roberto J. Galindo – Own Work: Foto tomada por Roberto J. Galindo (CC BY-SA 3.0) via Commons Wikimedia