What is the difference between Howell Jolly bodies and Heinz bodies?

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Howell-Jolly bodies are little fragments of the red cell nucleus. You see them most commonly in patients with splenectomies (normally, the spleen just bites them out). You can see them without a special stain – they look like dark, round dots. Heinz bodies are seen in G6PD deficiency.

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Other causes are radiation therapy involving the spleen, such as that used to treat Hodgkin lymphoma. Howell–Jolly bodies are also seen in amyloidosis, severe hemolytic anemia, megaloblastic anemia, hereditary spherocytosis, and myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS). The bodies can also can be seen in premature infants.

Secondly, where are Howell Jolly bodies found? Howell-Jolly bodies occur where there is no spleen or an non-functioning spleen, referred to as asplenia. They are usually one of these at most in a red cell, round, dark purple to red in color and often located peripherally on the red blood cell.

Subsequently, one may also ask, what do Heinz bodies indicate?

Heinz bodies (also referred to as Heinz-Ehrlich bodies) are inclusions within red blood cells composed of denatured hemoglobin. The presence of Heinz bodies represents damage to hemoglobin and is classically observed in G6PD deficiency, a genetic disorder that causes hemolytic anemia.

What causes Heinz body anemia?

Heinz body hemolytic anemia results from acute oxidative damage to the erythrocytes, caused by ingestion of maple leaves (red maple, Acer rubrum, and potentially sugar maple, A. saccharum, and silver maple, A. saccharinum), onions and garlic (Allium spp.), or certain drugs including phenothiazines or methylene blue.