Case Report
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2025. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Clin Cases. Jun 16, 2025; 13(17): 102207
Published online Jun 16, 2025. doi: 10.12998/wjcc.v13.i17.102207
Hyperleukocytosis associated with pertussis: Two case reports
Hong-Wu Han, Xi-Xia Wang, Ying Wang, Wei-Hua Zhang
Hong-Wu Han, Xi-Xia Wang, Department of Pediatric, Shaanxi University of Chinese Medicine, Xianyang 712046, Shaanxi Province, China
Ying Wang, Wei-Hua Zhang, Department of Pediatric Cardiovascular/Respiratory, Affiliated Rainbow Hospital of Shaanxi University of Chinese Medicine, Xianyang 712000, Shaanxi Province, China
Author contributions: Han HW wrote and revised the manuscript; Wang XX and Wang Y jointly collected the data; Zhang WH revised the manuscript for intellectual content; and all authors have read and approved the final manuscript.
Supported by the Key Research and Development Plan of Shaanxi Province, China, No. 2018SF-265.
Informed consent statement: All the procedures were approved by the Ethics Committee of Caihong Hospital. Informed consents were obtained from the parents/guardians of both patients.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
CARE Checklist (2016) statement: The authors have read the CARE Checklist (2016), and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the CARE Checklist (2016).
Open Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Wei-Hua Zhang, MD, Associate Chief Physician, Department of Pediatric Cardiovascular/Respiratory, Affiliated Rainbow Hospital of Shaanxi University of Chinese Medicine, No. 3 Weiyang West Road, Qindu District, Xianyang 712000, Shaanxi Province, China. xiangyuelanda2006@126.com
Received: October 11, 2024
Revised: January 13, 2025
Accepted: January 21, 2025
Published online: June 16, 2025
Processing time: 129 Days and 16.2 Hours
Core Tip

Core Tip: Hyperleukocytosis associated with pertussis is a serious condition associated with a high mortality rate. Timely application of relevant antibiotics, ventilator therapy and plasma exchange improve outcomes and reduces mortality. Plasma exchange plays a crucial role in decreasing the white blood cell count in pediatric patients with pertussis-induced hyperleukocytosis. A thorough evaluation of the child’s white blood cell count, circulatory status, and respiratory function is essential, and the timing of plasma exchange should be meticulously assessed.