Eosinopenia As A Diagnostic Marker For Enteric Fever: A One Year Hospital Based Cross Sectional Study

Abstract

Introduction Enteric fever is produced by gram negative bacteria, Salmonella typhi and paratyphi A, B and C. Enteric fever presents with clinical features of fever, headache and abdominal pain, which are hallmarks of this disease. A positive culture is the only confirmative diagnostic test for enteric fever. Simple hematological tests like a complete blood count are commonly performed tests in any patient presenting with fever. Absolute eosinopenia, ie, an eosinophil percentage of 0 on peripheral smear, is a consistent finding seen with enteric fever. It has a high negative predictive value, therefore a high eosinophil count may help the clinician rule out enteric fever and think of another diagnosis. In this study, we aim to prove the value of eosinophil count as a guide towards the diagnosis of enteric fever.