In clinical show there is a low number cells of WBC- lymphocyte through COVID 19 infection, although in virus infection lymphocytes should bee increased ?
Dr. Luis I'm very glad to you answer, but scientifically in viral infection lymphocytes should be increase to confrontation the virus but the finding in COVID 19 decrease
Some authors have hypothesized functional exhaustion of cytotoxic lymphocytes.
Article Functional exhaustion of antiviral lymphocytes in COVID-19 patients
In fact, lymphopenia is associated with outcomes in COVID-19: decreasing number of lymphocyte count reflects disease progression, while increasing levels are associated with recovery and discharge. Also, some other mechanisms for lymphopenia are discussed in this paper:
Secretion of cytokines and chemokines attracts immune cells, notably monocytes and T lymphocytes, but not neutrophils, from the blood into the infected site.
Pulmonary recruitment of immune cells from the blood and the infiltration of lymphocytes into the airways may explain the lymphopenia and increased neutrophil–lymphocyte ratio seen in around 80% of patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection.
The most probable explanation is the recruitment of lymphocytes in the inflammatory process with movements of them in the focus (lung and other organs)