Abstract
Objective: To analyze the signs, symptoms and values of the initial blood count of children who later had a definitive diagnosis, using myelogram, of leukemia. Methods: Medical records of 31 individuals, of both sexes, under the age of 18 years, with a diagnosis of lymphoid and myeloid leukemia were evaluated in the oncology service of a hospital in a city in the state of São Paulo. They were evaluated as absolute and determined frequencies, mean, standard deviation, minimum, maximum and average values. The study was approved by the Research Ethics Committee. Results: Considering the blood count variables of the patients analyzed, it is observed that 80.64% had anemia at the time of diagnosis, about 61.29% had leukocytosis and another 16.13% with leukopenia, while lymphocytosis was present in 67.74 % of children. In 25.80% of the patients, enlarged rods and 58.06% atypical lymphocytes were found, in addition, 54.83% of blasts were found in the hemograms and 83.87% of thrombocytopenia. Conclusion: The blood count has proven to be a valuable complementary instrument that, associated with the clinical condition and the physician expertise, can contribute to diagnose the disease in early stages, providing early treatment and improving the prognosis.