Hi Ed!
Do you have the WBC done before or after infusion?
I ask because when my WBC is done after infusion, they are in the high range. The doc explained that it will be higher than normal because the WBCs are circulating in the bloodstream but cannot attack the myelin by crossing the BBB because very few of them get through, so they are milling around with no place to go until they die off or find another infection/inflammation to fight. They come back down as the month goes by. Tysabri also attacks the WBCs when they are immature, killing them off before they can cause any damage to the myelin.

If your WBCs are high right before you have your infusion I would be asking questions about other low grade infection/inflammation, such as diabetes, arterial disease, low grade infections in other parts of the body, etc. Even gingivitis can cause high WBCs because it is a chronic inflammation, although a person may not feel ill from the infection. Any disease process that causes inflammation will increase WBCs.

This is why the big long fact sheet that is included every time you get anything about Ty includes information about infections, because in some people, Tysabri lowers the WBC to levels that don't fight infection /inflammation as fast as they would if there was no Ty in the system.

In my case, the WBCs are never above the high normal range, nor are they below the low normal range. My doc says it's because I am disgustingly healthy and he can't make any money off of me because of that...