Blood Test Flashcards
When centrifuges whole blood will separate into what?
Components
What are the components of blood?
Formed elements (RBC, WBC, and platelets) Fluid matrix (plasma)
Plasma makes up how much of blood?
55%
How much of blood does the Buffy coat make up?
<1%
What is the Buffy coat made of?
WBC (leukocytes) and platelets
Red blood cells are also called
Erythrocytes
How much of blood do red blood cells make up?
45%
Red blood cells are
Heavy and fall to the bottom
What is the pH of blood?
7.35-7.45
Blood is bright scarlet red when it is
Oxygen rich
Blood is dull brick red when it is
Oxygen poor
Normal adults have about how much blood?
5L total (4-5 for females) and (5-6L for males)
Plasma is made 90% of what?
Water
Greater than 100 different substances are dissolved where?
Plasma
What are the solutes in plasma?
Nutrients, salts, oxygen, CO2, hormones, proteins, and wastes
Plasma contains what to stop bleeding?
Clotting proteins
What color is plasma?
Straw color and clear
What do red blood cells do? (Erythrocytes)
Carry oxygen to all body cells
What shape are erythrocytes?
Disk shape (biconcave and anvcleate)
How long do RBCs live?
120 days
What do erythrocytes contain?
Hemaglobin (an iron protein that carries oxygen and CO2)
Hemoglobin in RBCs contributes to the
Thickness (viscosity) of blood
RBCs outnumber WBCs by how much?
1000:1
Each RBC can carry
1 billion molecules of oxygen
What is anemia?
A decrease in the oxygen-carrying ability of blood
What are the causes of anemia?
- Iron deficiency
- Decreased number of RBCs or decrease # of functioning RBCs
- Abnormal or deficient hemoglobin such as sickle cell
What is sickle cell anemia?
A genetic disorder (recessive trait) where cells become spiky and sickle shaped and oxygen in the blood is lower than normal.
In sickle cell anemia what can happen to the sickle cells?
The cells can rupture or clog up small blood vessels; this causes severe pain.
How do you treat sickle cell anemia?
With oxygen to regain disk shape or with blood transfusions from healthy donors.
What is polycythemia?
Excessive or abnormal increase in the number of RBCs
What are the causes of polycythemia?
- Living at high altitudes
2. Bone marrow cancer
How is bone marrow cancer treated?
Blood letting
Increased blood viscosity makes it hard to pump what through your body?
Blood
What do leukocytes do? (WBCs)
Fight infections (bacteria, viruses, parasites, and tumor cells)
Leukocytes do have a what?
Nucleus
How many different types of WBCs are thee in the blood?
5
What is it called when leukocytes come out of the blood and go into the tissues?
Diapedisis
What is it called when leukocytes locate areas of tissue damage and infection and respond?
Positive chemotaxis
In sickness your bone marrow will do what to help kill intruders?
Make twice the number of leukocytes
What is it called when bone marrow make twice the number of WBCs? And what does it indicate?
Leukocytosis; indicates a bacterial or viral infection such as infectious mononucleosis
What is leukopenia?
Abnormally low WBC count
What is leukopenia caused by?
Drugs
When WBCs in bone marrow become cancerous
Leukemia
In leukemia huge numbers of WBCs are turned out rapidly to blood stream and are…
Incapable of carrying out their normal protective functions. Can be fatal.
What are the 2 major groups of WBCs
Granulocytes and agranulocytes
Cells with granules and lobed nuclei
Granulocytes
Type of granulocyte that are the most abundant WBC; fight off bacteria. Granules stain pink
Neutrophils
Type of granulocyte that increases during allergies and parasitic worm infections. Granules stain orange/red
Eosinophils
Type of granulocyte that is the rarest. Granules stain blue and contains histamine (which promotes inflammation/heparin) (inhibits blood clotting)
Basophils
Lack visible granules
Agranulocytes
Type of agranulocyte that is the 2nd numerous WBC. Has a large dark purple nucleus and tiny cytoplasm.
Lymphocytes
What are the 2 types of lymphocytes?
T cells and B cells
What do T cells and B cells fight?
Viruses, tumor cells, and transplanted cells. Make antibodies in the body’s immune response
Type of agranulocyte that is the largest WBC that fights viruses. Acts as macrophages and eat bacteria and cell debris
Monocytes
Small fragments of a large cell called a megakaryocyte in the bone marrow.
Platelets
Platelets help to…
Stop bleeding by sticking together and sealing off a cut or broken blood vessel.
Platelets are…
Very tiny and stain purple
Where do blood cells form?
In the bone marrow inside bones by stem cells located there
The blood cells in the bone marrow mature and do what?
Move into blood stream
How long does it take for RBCs to mature and enter the blood stream?
3-5 days
How long do RBCs live?
120 days
When RBCs die what are they removed by?
The spleen
What is the rate of production of RBCs controlled by?
The hormone erythropoietin
Erythropoietin is released by the kidney when
Oxygen levels decline and it stimulates the bone marrow to speed up RBC production.
Production of WBCs occur in response to…
Infections
What are platelets also called?
Thrombocytes
Thrombocytes increase due to
Bleeding problems
Hemostasis means
To stop blood
Bleeding is stopped in how many phases?
3
In the 1st phase what constricts to help shrink the size of the hole (vascular spasm)
Blood vessels
In the 2nd phase the platelets do what?
Make a plug in the hole
In the third phase what takes place?
Coagulation (clotting)
In the first phase to stop bleeding the platelets release what to cause the blood vessels to constrict?
Serotonin
In the 2nd phase to stop bleeding platelets become sticky to…
Cling to the hole
What interferes with platelets becoming sticky?
Aspirin cause bleeding to take longer to stop
In the clotting phase your liver makes how many blood clotting proteins?
13
What is needed in your diet to make the 13 blood clotting proteins?
Vitamin K
The 13 proteins become activated when?
When you get a cut in a blood vessel
The 13 proteins form a…
Fibrin mesh that seals the hole
The fibrin mesh seals within
3-6 minutes
All 13 proteins are needed to …
Clot
A clot when you don’t need it
Thrombus
The thrombus can…
Block vessels and cause a heart attack
If a thrombus dislodges and floats it can cause a …
Stroke called embolus
Hemophilia is a
Hereditary bleeding disorder
People with hemophilia are missing what?
The clotting protein 8
How do you treat hemophilia?
Injection of donated factor 8 from healthy donors
People with hemophilia will need treatment their…
Entire lives
Red cells have over how many proteins on their membranes?
30
The 30 proteins are inherited from where?
Your parents
How many of the RBC proteins are extremely important when transfusing blood from a donor to recipient
3
These 3 proteins (antigens) make up your
Blood type
Type A blood has
A antigens on RBCs
Type B has
B antigens on RBCs
Type AB blood has both
A and B antigens on RBCs
Type O blood has neither
Antigens (most common blood type)
Blood group antigens must be what before transfusing?
Matched
Each person has what in their plasma to fight off what?
Antibodies; foreign antigens
If mismatched blood is transfused these antibodies will
Rupture the transfused cells and can cause kidney failure and death
Antibodies are formed when?
During infancy
These antibodies are formed against what?
ABO antigen not present in your RBCs
Type A forms
Anti-B
Type B forms
Anti-A
Type AB forms
None
Type O forms
Anti-A and Anti-B
What is the 3rd important blood group?
D ; called Rh
If you inherit the D you are considered
Positive
If you do not inherit the D you are considered
Negative
80% of the population is
Positive
Pregnant Rh- women who carry Rh+ babies can have
Problems
Blood can be exchanged from mom to baby during the birthing process. A mom can form and antibody against
The D on the baby’s anti-D
This can attack subsequent pregnancies if the mother carries
Rh+ baby
What are the treatments for these pregnancy problems?
A RhoGAM shot that keeps the mom from forming antibodies against their baby’s cells.
Without a RhoGAM shot what can happen?
A moms anti- D can rupture her baby cells and cause Hemolytic Disease of the Newborn
What are the symptoms of Hemolytic Disease of the Newborn?
Anemia, low oxygen levels, and possibly death
Artificially made anti-A, anti-B, and anti-D are mixed with red cells of the person to be
Typed
If the antigen is present in the red cell membrane the antibody will bind with it and cause all neighboring cells to
Clump together
The clumping together of all the neighboring cells is called
Agglutination
Agglutination can be seen with your eyes as clumps called
Agglutinates
Type A clumps with
Anti-A
Type B clumps with
Anti-B
Type AB clumps with
Anti-A and Anti-B
Type O
Does not clump
Donated blood is tested with what before a transfusion can begin?
Patients blood
Blood from the donated unit is mixed with what from the patient to make sure the patient will not reject the donated blood?
Plasma
Doctors and nurses will monitor the patient to make sure the blood is compatible and does not cause
Problems
Type A patient can receive blood from types
A and O
Type B patient can receive blood from type
B and O
Type AB can receive blood from types
A, AB, B, and O
Type O can receive from
Type O only
What blood type is the universal recipient?
AB
What is the universal donor?
Type O
