Benign ethnic neutropenia: What is a normal absolute neutrophil count?

The Duffy-null state is associated with a survival advantage in leukopenic HIV-infected persons of African ancestry

“…This possibility is of particular interest because persons of African ancestry, on average, have significantly lower WBC counts, secondary to lower neutrophil cell counts, than persons of European descent. [14][15][16][17] In otherwise healthy persons, low WBC counts in persons of African ancestry are thought to be both genetically determined and benign, as they have not been associated with an increased incidence of bacterial infection. 14 This has resulted in the designation of this condition as "benign ethnic leukopenia or neutropenia."…”

“…[14][15][16][17] In otherwise healthy persons, low WBC counts in persons of African ancestry are thought to be both genetically determined and benign, as they have not been associated with an increased incidence of bacterial infection. 14 This has resulted in the designation of this condition as "benign ethnic leukopenia or neutropenia." 14,16,17 In light of the preceding discussion, we considered whether differences in WBC counts also result in racial differences in HIV disease outcome.…”

“…14 This has resulted in the designation of this condition as "benign ethnic leukopenia or neutropenia." 14,16,17 In light of the preceding discussion, we considered whether differences in WBC counts also result in racial differences in HIV disease outcome. Such an analysis could be confounded by social factors (eg, access to health care, socioeconomic status).…”

Laboratory Reference Intervals in Africa

“…However, differences have been reported between these values when compared to healthy African population values [16]. These include lower hemoglobin, red blood cell counts, hematocrit, mean corpuscular volume, platelets and neutrophils, and higher monocyte and eosinophil levels for African population compared to their Western counterparts [16,[24][25][26] and Africans of European decent [27,28]. Moreover, variations in several indices have been reported between different African ethnic groups [26,[29][30][31].…”

“…Within the U.S., lower neutrophil counts are more common among blacks compared to Caucasians [28]. Thus, it is not unsurprising to observe a higher proportion of African study participants (22.5-35%) having neutrophil counts below the lower range of Massachusetts General Hospital's population-derived reference interval [9].…”