Leucocytosis and severe pain due to ureteral calculi.

We reviewed the outcome of 300 cases without urinary tract infections to determine the relationship between leucocytosis and severe pain due to ureteral calculi. Leucocytosis above 9,000 cells per cmm was seen in 87.7% of the cases. Many patients (61%) had a leucocyte count between 9,000 and 12,000, but none had that exceeding 22,000. This leucocytosis can be attributed to a transient distributional alteration by means of leucopheresis to circulation sites from a storage pool such as the blood vessels in the spleen, liver, lung, etc. Since leucocytosis often accompanies ureteral calculi, caution should be exercised in distinguishing it from appendicitis.