Skin Window Studies of the Acute Inflammatory Responses of Neutropenic Patients

The acute inflammatory responses of three cyclic neutropenic and 15 chronic neutropenic patients were studied with the Rebuck skin window technique. The neutrophil responses at 3 and 5 hr after initiation of the inflammation were roughly proportional to the blood neutrophil counts. Cyclic neutropenics in their neutropenic phase and severe chronic neutropenics both showed normal mononuclear cell responses. These observations indicate that neutrophil accumulation at an inflammatory site is not necessary to initiate the mononuclear cell response as previously postulated. It is further suggested that in these patients with decreased neutrophils but normal monocyte counts the monocytes play a vital role in preventing serious infections.