neutrophilic

Neutrophilic is an adjective used to describe anything pertaining to neutrophils, the most abundant type of white blood cell in humans. In medical and scientific usage, it often signals a predominance of neutrophils in blood, tissue, or body fluids.

Neutrophilic inflammation refers to an inflammatory response that is dominated by neutrophils. It is a hallmark of many acute bacterial infections and is commonly observed in abscesses, purulent discharge, and early wound healing. Histologically, a neutrophilic infiltrate describes tissue in which neutrophils predominate, sometimes with associated tissue damage and necrosis.

In hematology, neutrophilic leukocytosis denotes an elevated neutrophil count, often seen during acute infection, inflammation, stress, steroid therapy, smoking, or after strenuous exercise. The opposite condition is neutropenia, a low neutrophil count, which increases infection risk.

Neutrophils execute their functions by rapid migration to sites of infection (chemotaxis), phagocytosis of microbes, degranulation releasing antimicrobial substances, and the formation of neutrophil extracellular traps. The term neutrophilic can thus describe both the cellular makeup of a sample and the functional pattern of an inflammatory process.