The nurse is assigned to care for a patient who presents with fever, chills, lethargy, and sore throat. Past medical history is significant for schizophrenia diagnosed three months ago for which clozapine was prescribed. Which additional laboratory finding does the nurse expect to see in this patient?

Low absolute neutrophil count. This patient presents with signs and symptoms of neutropenia, namely fever, chills, lethargy, weakness, and sore throat. Agranulocytosis is associated with clozapine. Patients taking this medication should regularly have an absolute neutrophil count (ANC) monitored and should be monitored for signs of neutropenia. Low serum blood glucose would typically present with altered mental status and confusion, not fevers, chills, and sore throat. Elevated lymphocyte count could be associated with a viral infection or lymphoma, but this is a less likely diagnosis. Low CD4+ T cell count would be characteristic of HIV infection which could present in a similar way, but, due to the recent prescription of clozapine, neutropenia in this patient is much more likely.

The nurse is assigned to care for a patient who presents with fev...

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Pharmacological and Parenteral Therapies
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Category: Pharmacological and Parenteral Therapies
Difficulty: 7

Topics: Medication and Blood Products Psychiatric Medications Health Promotion Hematology/Oncology Immunity Inflammation Laboratory Studies

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