28 - Haematology - Blood and Anaemia Flashcards
-paenia
Not enough
Too many red cells
Polycythaemia
Too many white cells in blood
Leukocytosis
Too many platelets in blood
Thrombocytosis
Red cells not functioning properly
Dyserythropoiesis
White cells not functioning properly
White cell function defect
Platelets not functioning properly
Platelet function defect
How is anaemia measured?
By measuring haemoglobin, not red cells
How is anaemia defined?
Hb count below what is normal for age and gender
Most important equation in haematology
Tissue oxygen delivery
Cardiac output x [Hb] x % saturation of Hb x 1.34
L/min x g/L x mL/g x 1.34 = mL/minute
Clinical signs of anaemia 1) 2) 3) 4) 5) 6)
1) Pale
2) Lethargic
3) Failure to thrive (in children)
4) Hypoxia
5) Ischaemia
6) Tachycardia
Important factor to consider when deciding whether to give a blood transfusion
Cardiac compensation. If heart rate is very high, then transfuse quickly, as can’t sustain very high heart rate for long
Why don’t you ventilate anaemics with O2?
Saturation of Hb is already high, there just isn’t enough Hb
Normal amount of Hb in blood
120-140g/L
Thing to be careful of when reading Hb content of blood result
Whether the lab measures Hb per L or per decilitre (will make normal either 120-140 or 12-14)
Full blood examinations 1) 2) 3) 4) 5) 6) 7) 8) 9) 10)
1) Hb
2) Red cell count (RCC)
3) Haematocrit (Hct)
4) Mean corpuscular volume (MCV)
5) Mean corpuscular haemoglobin (MCH)
6) Mean corpuscular haemoglobin concentration (MCHC)
7) Red cell distribution width (RCDW)
8) Platelet count
9) White cell count
10) Blood film
RCC
Red cell count.
Measures red cell concentration in blood.
Normal is 4.5-5x10^12/L
Hct
Haematocrit.
Analyses proportion of blood that is cellular.