Body Fluids Flashcards
Steps of performing a body fluid count
- color and turbidity
- perform hemocytometer count if not bloody or use automated
- centrifuge and remove supernatant
- cytocentrifuge slide or push smear if too many cells
Volumes of CSF
- adults: 100-150 ml
- children: 60-100 ml
- newborns: 10-60 ml
Purpose of CSF
- bathes the brain and spinal column
- cushion to brain
- circulates nutrients
- excretory channel for nervous tissue metabolism
- lubrication for CNS
Normal color of CSF
clear, non-viscous
First tube contains blood but the remaining tubes are clear or progressively get clearer, supernatant is clear
Traumatic tap
all tubes are uniformly bloody, supernatant is yellowish or pinkish yellow
subarachnoid hemorrhage
yellowish or pinkish color of the supernatant
xanthochromia
Tube usage of CSF
- chemistry and immunology
- microbiology
- hematology
- chemistry
Normal CSF cell counts in adults
0-5 WBCs
0 RBCs
Normal CSF cell counts in neonates
0-30 WBCs
0 RBCs
Predominant cell in CSF in adults
lymphocytes
Predominant cell in CSF in neonates
monocytes
- WBC count in the thousands
- neutrophils predominate
- bacteria
- low CSF glucose and increased protein
bacterial meningitis
- WBC count can be in the hundreds
- lymphocytes predominate
- reactive and plasmacytoid lymphocytes
- normal CSF glucose and slight increased protein
viral meningitis
- elevated WBC count
- cells appear in clumps
malignancies
eosinophils and basophils present
foreign material (shunts), parasitic infection or allergic reacion
high probability of blasts
ALL, AML, lymphoma, myeloma, CML
space between lungs and pleural sac
pleural fluid
space between heart and pericardial sac
pericardial fluid
space between intestine and peritoneal cavity
peritoneal fluid
fluid usually exists in extremely small quantities
examination
accumulation of fluid in the cavity
also called ascites or ascetic fluid
effusion
- develops as part of a systemic disease process
- appears as straw-colored and clear
- ex-congestive heart failure
transudate
- develops due to bacterial or viral infection, malignancy, pulmonary embolism, or systemic lupus erythematosus
- appears as cloudy or hazy
exudate
- lining cells of body cavity and shed constantly
- have fried egg appearance, basophilic cytoplasm, and oval nucleus with smooth nuclear borders
mesothelial cells
allergic reaction to foreign material
eosinophils and basophils
perform gram stain if possible for bacteria
neutrophils
intact neutrophil that has engulfed a homogenous mass of degranulated nuclear material
lupus erythematosus cells
purpose is surrounds and cushions joints
synovial fluid
normal quantity and color of synovial fluid
- extremely small quantities
- straw-colored and clear
What makes synovial fluid viscous and what should be added
- hyaluronic acid
- hyaluronidase
normal cells in synovial fluid
lymphocytes, monocytes, synovial cells
line the cavity and appear similar to mesothelial cells but seen in smaller amounts
synovial cells
similar to those seen in serous fluid
lupus erythematosus cells
cells seen in synovial fluid with acute inflammation and bacterial infection
neutrophils
common crystals of synovial fluid
- cholesterol
- calcium pyrophosphate
- monosodium urate
- large, flat, extracellular crystal with notched corners
- chronic effusion, rheumatoid arthritis
cholesterol
- intracellular and are small rhomboid, plate-like, or rod-like crystals
- weakly birefringent when polarized
- appears blue when longitudinal axis of the crystal is parallel to the y-axis
- pseudogout
calcium pyrophosphate
- intracellular or extracellular and are large needle-like crystals
- strongly birefringent when polarized
- appears yellow when longitudinal axis of the crystal is parallel to the y-axis
- gout
monosodium urate
- an unnaturally occurring specimen collected from the lungs by introducing warm saline and withdrawing it
- used to determine types of organisms and cells in the lungs that are otherwise inaccessible
- performed on patients with severe lung dysfunction
bronchoalveolar lavage
normal cells of BAL
neutrophils, monohistiocytes (macrophages), and lymphocytes
resemble mesothelial cells and seen in adult respiratory distress syndrome
pneumocytes
indicates sample was obtained from the upper respiratory tract instead of the deep lungs
ciliated epithelial cell
purpose of hemocytometer count
to quantitate the three major cell lines
equation of hemocytometer
cell count = (cells counteddilution factor)/(area counteddepth)
