FREQUENCY OF LEUKOCYTOSIS IN PATIENT PRESENTING WITH ORGANOPHOPHATE POISONING

Abstract

Background: Organophosphate (OP) poisoning is a major cause of acute pesticide toxicity and may produce substantial systemic physiological stress. Leukocytosis is a recognized response to acute stress and has been investigated as an accessible laboratory parameter in OP poisoning. This study assessed the frequency of leukocytosis among patients presenting with acute OP poisoning. Objective: To determine the frequency of leukocytosis among patients presenting with organophosphate poisoning to the emergency department of a tertiary-care hospital. Method: A cross-sectional study was conducted at the Department of Medicine, Abbasi Shaheed Hospital, Karachi, from January 18 to July 17, 2023. A total of 132 patients aged 16–65 years presenting within one hour of OP ingestion were enrolled through non-probability consecutive sampling. Patients with mixed or multiple poisoning, steroid use, immunocompromised status, or refusal of consent were excluded. After initial stabilization, demographic and clinical information was recorded, and a 5-mL blood sample was obtained for total leukocyte count (TLC). Leukocytosis was defined according to the study's operational definition. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 22. Continuous variables were assessed for normality using the Shapiro–Wilk test, while categorical variables were analyzed using the chi-square or Fisher's exact test. A p-value ≤0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: The mean age of participants was 30.89±11.50 years, and 87 (65.9%) were male. The mean TLC was 9.46±2.97 ×10⁹/L. Leukocytosis was present in 49 (37.1%) patients. No statistically significant association with leukocytosis was observed for age group (p=0.586), gender (p=0.103), residential status (p=0.586), marital status (p=0.531), educational status (p=0.173), diabetes mellitus (p=0.768), hypertension (p=0.310), or smoking status (p=0.835). Conclusion: Leukocytosis was observed in more than one-third of patients with acute OP poisoning. Routine leukocyte assessment may provide a readily available indicator of the systemic response to poisoning, although its clinical significance and prognostic value require further investigation.