Leucocyte and lymphocyte count in cases of bird flu infection in Thailand

Bird flu or avian flu is a new emerging Infectious disease. The H5N1 virus has not only affected the fowls but also the human beings. Severe disease with high mortality in humans in Vietnam and Thailand are reported. This mini-study was undertaken in order to document the Impact of bird flu infection on leucocyte and lymphocyte counts among patients of Thailand. This study was designed as a descriptive retrospective study. A literature review on the papers concerning human bird flu in Thailand was performed. According to this study, there are 6 cases covering 12 Thai patients with confirmed diagnosis of bird flu. However, the complete data were available on only 6 patients. The reported leucocyte count ranges from 1,200 cells/cmm to 5,680 cells/cmm and the lymphocyte count ranges from 454 cells/ cmm to 1,440 cells/cmm. The average leucocyte and lymphocyte counts equalled to 3,230.0 +/- 1,552.7 cells/cmm and 748.7 +/- 348.5 cells/cmm, respectively. According to this study, low lymphocyte count is common. This can support the previous observation for the lymphocyte suppression effect of H5N1 virus.