Lymphocytes %
What it measures, and what changes the number.
This line gives lymphocytes as a share of all white blood cells counted. Lymphocytes are the immune cells that include T cells, B cells and natural killer cells, and the percentage comes from the white cell differential performed by an automated analyzer or, sometimes, by looking at a blood smear under a microscope.
Because a percentage depends on how many of the other white cell types are present, it is usually read together with the absolute lymphocyte count and the total white blood cell count. A shift in neutrophils, for example, changes the lymphocyte percentage even if the number of lymphocytes stays the same.
The blood is collected in an EDTA tube and fasting is not needed. Time of day, exercise and stress can affect the differential. Labs may print it as Limfòcits or Linfocitos %.
Often read alongside: Lymphocytes, White blood cells, Neutrophils %, Monocytes %, Eosinophils %