Hematologic values among Warao indians with tuberculosis from the Orinoco Delta of Venezuela

Tuberculosis (TB) is a public health problem in Venezuelan indian communities. This study describes differences in hematological parameters in TB patients from two populations, Warao indians (WP) and creoles (CP). Control groups included Warao adults (WC) and children (WCh) as well as creole adults (CC). The results showed that the WP and WCh had significantly lower hemoglobin (Hb) levels than the WC and CC groups. Warao patients and two Warao control groups had significantly lower concentrations of median corpuscular Hb (MCHC) than the CP and CC groups. Regarding leucocyte indices, we observed a significant increament in the monocytes percentage in WP, WC and WCh, compared to CP and CC. In contrast, the neutrophils percentage was significantly reduced in all the Warao groups compared with the creole groups. Both WP and CP patient groups had higher platelet counts than those of the WC and CC groups. In relation to the body mass index (BMI), used as nutritional status indicator in Warao indians, we observed that the highest BMI was obtained in the adolescent group; with a continuous decreased with age. In conclusion, both WP and WCh presented decreased levels of Hb with erythrocytic hypochromia. Similar to the WCh, indian adults, even in the absence of the disease, presented a formula of white blood cells characterized by monocytosis, high percentage of lymphocytes and low percentage of neutrophils.