Objectives:

This study aims to determine the impact of severe sepsis (SS) on CD34⁺ cell counts in the peripheral blood and to compare these counts with those of healthy subjects.

Patients and methods:

CD34⁺ cell counts in the peripheral blood were measured in 20 patients with SS (12 males, 8 females; mean age 58.6±16.3 years; range 23 to 81 years) (group 1) and 32 healthy subjects (16 males, 16 females; mean age 51.8±8.6 years; range 36 to 64 years) (group 2). Blood samples were obtained from group 1 two times on second day (D2) within the first 24-48 hours and on seventh day (D7) after diagnosis and once from group 2 on their first day of admittance.

Results:

In group 1, CD34⁺ cell counts on D2 were lower than those on D7, but the difference was not statistically significant. Neither on D2 nor on D7 CD34⁺ cell counts of group 1 were different than those in group 2. Although CD34⁺ cell counts in group 1 on D7 were higher than those of group 2, the difference was not statistically significant. CD34⁺ cell counts did not differ according to the presence of adrenal insufficiency (AI) or survival status.

Conclusion:

Overall CD34⁺ cell counts of SS patients were not different from those in healthy subjects and not affected by the presence of AI or survival in the SS group.

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