Leukograms stressing you out? Check out this summary of patterns
Stress Leukogram:
Characterized by lymphopenia, eosinopenia, monocytosis and neutrophilia
Monocytosis is more common in dogs than other species
Physiologic leukocytosis:
Characterized by lymphocytosis, neutrophilia
Cats may also have eosinophilia and basophilia
Inflammatory Leukogram:
Characterized by neutrophilia, later followed by neutropenia if the bone marrow cannot keep up with the demand for leukocytes
Left shift (which means more immature neutrophils such as bands)
Toxic changes may be seen in more severe cases of inflammatory responses
Lymphopenia and sometimes, eosinopenia
Remember that sometimes it is hard to distinguish stress leukograms from inflammatory leukograms based on leukocytosis alone - make sure to use your physical exam and other lab findings to help you in these situations!
References:
1) Yin, S. A. (2010). The small animal veterinary nerdbook. Davis, CA: CattleDog Pub.
2) Eclin path. https://eclinpath.com/hematology/leukogram-changes/leukogram-patterns