What laboratory finding is typical in a child with acute bacterial rhinosinusitis?

In cases of acute bacterial rhinosinusitis, the inflammatory response to the bacterial infection often results in leukocytosis, which is an elevated white blood cell count. This increase indicates that the body is actively fighting an infection. Neutrophils, a type of white blood cell, are typically predominant in acute bacterial infections and are part of the immune response to clear the infection.

While culturing bacteria from a nasal swab may provide definitive evidence of a bacterial cause, it is not routinely done in clinical practice given the invasive nature and the variability of microbial flora. Normal nasal mucus appearance is atypical in bacterial rhinosinusitis, as the condition usually leads to purulent (pus-like) mucus due to infection. Lastly, the presence of eosinophils in nasal secretions is more commonly associated with allergic conditions rather than bacterial infections. Therefore, the laboratory finding of an elevated white blood cell count aligns closely with the inflammatory response seen in acute bacterial rhinosinusitis.