Eileen presents with flu-like symptoms, including fever, chills, and body aches.


b. You order blood work and find that the number of neutrophils in the blood is greatly elevated. What does this tell you about the likely type of pathogen involved? Explain.

Mr. White has been diagnosed with febrile neutropenia, a condition characterized by the presence of a fever with an extremely low number of neutrophils in the blood. Blood work demonstrates the presence of bacteria in his blood. Explain why neutropenia might lead to a bacterial infection. Why is a bacterial infection particularly dangerous for Mr. White?