What does a low white blood count and a low plt count mean?

Question

My daughter has a low plt count . They are testing her for different things. What I would like to know is in the last test it showed a low wbc and low plt count and her monocyte count was a little high. So, what does that mean.

My daugther has had a low plt. count for several years. My doctor has decide to start testing her every month now. She has had two test now. The first ruled out rheuematoid and they ran a ana screen to which was negative. I'am waiting on the second set of results. But, I had noticed the low wbc in the first test . Thats why I asked what that would mean with the low plt count. She has not been sick at all. She just has migraines from time to time.

Answer 1

Low platelet count means that the blood will not clot very well if she gets cut and it will bleed longer.
A low white blood cell count means that her immune system is not as capable as it should be to fight off germs.
The doctor and/or phlebotomist should be able to give you more accurate indications from the numbers and a possible prognosis.

Answer 2

It can mean a lot of different things, but the most likely one is that she had a viral infection. Viral infections can make your white blood cells go up or down and platlets can go down. However, a viral infection shouldn't make the cell counts like that for long. If a repeat CBC shows the same thing in a few weeks, then a more involved battery of tests should be done, because there could be something more serious going on.

They may do a blood smear where they look at the blood cells under a microscope by hand, not a machine like a CBC. A bone marrow test, where they insert a needle into the bone to look at the cells that make blood cells, may also be done.

So, while by far and away the most common reason for an out-of-whack CBC is a viral infection, if the abnormalities persist, a more thorough work-up to check for more serious things is in order. These more serious things could include leukemia, but there are a lot of other less serious blood disorders that could also be going on.

Answer 3

2 cell lines in the blood are depressed. A bone marrow biopsy must be done. Most probably, your daughter has aplastic anemia. This means that the bone marrow is not working as it should to produce blood cells; i.e.red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets. This may be temporary or permanent. It may be due to an infection, drug or some other reason. A repeat CBC and bone marrow biopsy will provide further information. I hope for your daughter's sake that her marrow recovers spontaneously.

Answer 4

Low numbers of WBCs (leukopenia) may indicate:
* bone marrow failure (for example, due to infection, tumor, fibrosis)
* presence of cytotoxic substance
* collagen-vascular diseases (such as lupus erythematosus)
* disease of the liver or spleen.
Please see the web pages for more details on Leukopenia and Thrombocytopenia. Autoimmune disease such as Lupus erythematosus is suspected. Please consult the doctor.
Please note that I am not a medical professional.