Result explanation of WBC, RBC and Platelets evaluation

WBC Evaluation 

TEST	FULL NAME	EXAMPLES OF CAUSES OF A LOW COUNT	EXAMPLES OF CAUSES OF A HIGH COUNT
WBC	White Blood Cell Count (See reference range)	Known as leukopenia Bone marrow disorders or damage Autoimmune conditions Severe infections (sepsis) Lymphoma or other cancer that spread to the bone marrow Dietary deficiencies Diseases of immune system (e.g., HIV/AIDS)	Known as leukocytosis Infection, most commonly bacterial or viral Inflammation Leukemia, myeloproliferative disorders Allergies, asthma Tissue death (trauma, burns, heart attack) Intense exercise or severe stress
Diff	White Blood Cell Differential (Not always performed; may be done as part of or in follow up to CBC; see reference range)
Neu, PMN, polys	Absolute neutrophil count, % neutrophils (See reference range)	Known as neutropenia Severe, overwhelming infection (sepsis) Autoimmune disorders Dietary deficiencies Reaction to drugs, chemotherapy Immunodeficiency Myelodysplasia Bone marrow damage (e.g., chemotherapy, radiation therapy) Cancer that spreads to the bone marrow	Known as neutrophilia Acute bacterial infections Inflammation Trauma, heart attack, or burns Stress, rigorous exercise Certain leukemias (e.g., chronic myeloid leukemia) Cushing syndrome
Lymph	Absolute lymphocyte count, % lymphocytes (See reference range)	Known as lymphocytopenia Autoimmune disorders (e.g., lupus, rheumatoid arthritis) Infections (e.g., HIV, viral hepatitis, typhoid fever, influenza) Bone marrow damage (e.g., chemotherapy, radiation therapy) Corticosteroids	Known as lymphocytosis Acute viral infections (e.g., chicken pox, cytomegalovirus (CMV),Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), herpes, rubella) Certain bacterial infections (e.g., pertussis (whooping cough),tuberculosis (TB)) Toxoplasmosis Chronic inflammatory disorder (e.g., ulcerative colitis) Lymphocytic leukemia, lymphoma Stress (acute)
Mono	Absolute monocyte count, % monocytes (See reference range)	Usually, one low count is not medically significant. Repeated low counts can indicate: Bone marrow damage or failure Hairy cell leukemia Aplastic anemia	Chronic infections (e.g., tuberculosis, fungal infection) Infection within the heart (bacterial endocarditis) Collagen vascular diseases (e.g., lupus, scleroderma, rheumatoid arthritis, vasculitis) Monocytic or myelomonocytic leukemia (acute or chronic)
Eos	Absolute eosinophil count, % eosinophils (See reference range)	Numbers are normally low in the blood. One or an occasional low number is usually not medically significant	Asthma, allergies such as hay fever Drug reactions Parasitic infections Inflammatory disorders (celiac disease, inflammatory bowel disease) Some cancers, leukemias or lymphomas Addison disease
Baso	Absolute basophil count, % basophils (See reference range)	As with eosinophils, numbers are normally low in the blood; usually not medically significant	Rare allergic reactions (hives, food allergy) Inflammation (rheumatoid arthritis, ulcerative colitis) Some leukemias Uremia

© 2001 - 2015 by American Association for Clinical Chemistry

RBC Evaluation 

TEST	FULL NAME	EXAMPLES OF CAUSES OF LOW RESULT	EXAMPLES OF CAUSES OF HIGH RESULT
RBC	Red Blood Cell Count (See reference range)	Known as anemia Acute or chronic bleeding RBC destruction (e.g., hemolytic anemia, etc.) Nutritional deficiency (e.g., iron deficiency, vitamin B12 or folate deficiency) Bone marrow disorders or damage Chronic inflammatory disease Chronic kidney disease	Known as polycythemia Dehydration Lung (pulmonary) disease Kidney or other tumor that produces excess erythropoietin Smoking Living at high altitude Genetic causes (altered oxygen sensing, abnormality in hemoglobin oxygen release) Polycythemia vera—a rare disease
Hb	Hemoglobin (See reference range)	Usually mirrors RBC results, provides added information	Usually mirrors RBC results
Hct	Hematocrit (See reference range)	Usually mirrors RBC results	Usually mirrors RBC results; most common cause is dehydration
RBC indices
MCV	Mean Corpuscular Volume (See reference range)	Indicates RBCs are smaller than normal (microcytic); caused by iron deficiency anemia or thalassemias, for example.	Indicates RBCs are larger than normal (macrocytic), for example in anemia caused by vitamin B12 or folate deficiency, myelodysplasia, liver disease, hypothyroidism
MCH	Mean Corpuscular Hemoglobin (See reference range)	Mirrors MCV results; small red cells would have a lower value.	Mirrors MCV results; macrocytic RBCs are large so tend to have a higher MCH.
MCHC	Mean Corpuscular Hemoglobin Concentration (See reference range)	May be low when MCV is low; decreased MCHC values (hypochromia) are seen in conditions such as iron deficiency anemia and thalassemia.	Increased MCHC values (hyperchromia) are seen in conditions where the hemoglobin is more concentrated inside the red cells, such as autoimmune hemolytic anemia, in burn patients, and hereditary spherocytosis, a rare congenital disorder.
RDW (Not always reported)	RBC Distribution Width	Low value indicates uniformity in size of RBCs.	Indicates mixed population of small and large RBCs; young RBCs tend to be larger. For example, in iron deficiency anemia or pernicious anemia, there is high variation (anisocytosis) in RBC size (along with variation in shape – poikilocytosis), causing an increase in the RDW.
Reticulocyte Count (Not always done)	Reticulocytes (absolute count or %) (See reference range)	In the setting of anemia, a low reticulocyte count indicates a condition is affecting the production of red blood cells, such as bone marrow disorder or damage, or a nutritional deficiency (iron, B12 or folate).	In the setting of anemia, a high reticulocyte count generally indicates peripheral cause, such as bleeding orhemolysis, or response to treatment (e.g., iron supplementation for iron deficiency anemia).

© 2001 - 2015 by American Association for Clinical Chemistry

Platelet Evaluation 

TEST	FULL NAME	EXAMPLES OF CAUSES OF LOW RESULT	EXAMPLES OF CAUSES OF HIGH RESULT
Plt	Platelet Count (Seereference range)	Known as thrombocytopenia: Viral infection (mononucleosis, measles, hepatitis) Rocky mountain spotted fever Platelet autoantibody Drugs (acetaminophen, quinidine, sulfa drugs) Cirrhosis Autoimmune disorders Sepsis Leukemia, lymphoma Myelodysplasia Chemo or radiation therapy	Know as thrombocytosis: Cancer (lung, gastrointestinal, breast, ovarian, lymphoma) Rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease, lupus Iron deficiency anemia Hemolytic anemia Myeloproliferative disorder (e.g., essential thrombocythemia)
MPV (Not always reported)	Mean Platelet Volume	Indicates average size of platelets is small; older platelets are generally smaller than younger ones and a low MPV may mean that a condition is affecting the production of platelets by the bone marrow.	Indicates a high number of larger, younger platelets in the blood; this may be due to the bone marrow producing and releasing platelets rapidly into circulation.
PDW (Not always reported)	Platelet Distribution Width	Indicates uniformity in size of platelets	Indicates increased variation in the size of the platelets, which may mean that a condition is present that is affecting platelets

© 2001 - 2015 by American Association for Clinical Chemistry

---

Reference:

1. Labtestsonline.org,. 'Complete Blood Count: The Test | Complete Blood Count: CBC Test | Lab Tests Online; Complete Blood Count Test: CBC; Hemogram; CBC With Differential | Lab Tests Online'. N.p., 2015. Web. 5 Nov. 2015.