When should granulocyte function be checked?

Behind many clinical cases with recurrent, severe infections, absesses, delayed wound healing and especially in antibiotic resistant sepsis some granulocyte function abnormalities can be detected. The abnormalities are of inherited and acquired origin. The inherited dysfunctions are discussed here in details, but the appearance of some failures in neutrophil functions should be taken into consideration when examining patients with other diseases (e.g. diabetes, infections, periodontal disease, zinc deficiency, malignancies, uremia etc.). The main clinical tools for the diagnosis of the qualitative abnormalities in neutrophil functions are chemotaxis with migration, and an NBT test with and without stimulation, as a first indication. Any deviation in the result of these function tests requires further determinations.