CBC Not Reliable To Screen Infant Bacterial Infections

Shocking but true! Complete blood cell count (CBC) parameters failed to diagnose 60-80% cases of invasive bacterial infections (IBIs) in febrile infants <60 days, show the results from a recent JAMA Pediatrics study. Early diagnosis of IBIs is necessary to prevent infant morbidity and mortality. These results become significant in light of the fact that CBC count is most commonly used test to risk stratify febrile infants.

IBIs are one of the major cause of infant mortality and diagnosing IBIs in infants younger than 60 days is a challenge for clinicians. The most commonly used test is CBC count parameters including peripheral white blood cell (WBC) count and absolute neutrophil count (ANC). Although serum inflammatory markers, such as procalcitonin and C-reactive protein can more accurately predict IBIs in infants, clinicians to continue to use CBC parameters the ease and tradition of…