Neutropenia medical therapy
|
Neutropenia Microchapters |
|
Diagnosis |
|---|
|
Treatment |
|
Case Studies |
|
Neutropenia medical therapy On the Web |
|
American Roentgen Ray Society Images of Neutropenia medical therapy |
|
Risk calculators and risk factors for Neutropenia medical therapy |
Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]
Overview
Medical Therapy
Asymptomatic, mild to moderate neutropenia can often be monitored closely on an outpatient basis with serial CBCs and evaluation for medications, infections, or alternative sources of neutropenia as described in detail above. Offending medications are often held and the patient is monitored for response to discontinuation while evaluating for alternative, more concerning etiologies. With mild neutropenia, medications can often be reintroduced after neutrophil counts recover as the neutropenia is typically dose-dependent.
Patients who are febrile, acutely ill, or with severe neutropenia often warrant urgent hospitalization for close monitoring and treatment. Offending medications must be discontinued as drug-induced agranulocytosis presents up to a 10% mortality and is very likely to recur if the offending agent is restarted.
There is no specific therapy for neutropenia itself aside from removing the offending agents in drug-induced cases and treating the underlying disease in other, however recombinant G-CSF (granulocyte-colony stimulating factor) can be considered to speed myeloid reconstitution.
Contraindicated medications
Neutropenia is considered an absolute contraindication to the use of the following medications: