Lab Investigation Of The Full Blood Count And White Cell Disorders Flashcards
What are the first steps in normal haematopoiesis?
Multipotent haematopoietic stem cell divides into a lymphoid or myeloid stem cell
What do lymphoid stem cells divide into?
Lymphoblast
-> natural killer cells
Or
-> T and B lymphocytes
What does a myeloid stem cell divide into?
Megakaryoblast
Proerythroblast
Myeloblast
Monoblast
What do monoblasts differentiate into?
Monocytes
What do myeloblasts differentiate into?
Basophil
Neutrophil
Eosinophil
What do proerythroblasts differentiate into?
Reticulocyte -> erythrocyte
What do megakaryoblasts differentiate into?
Megokaryocytes
Platelets
What is in a full blood count?
Hb concentration HCt MCV MCH RDW Reticulocyte count
What is HCt?
Haematocrit = percentage of blood volume as RBC
What is MCV?
Mean corpuscular volume = average size of RBC
What is MCH?
Mean corpuscular haemoglobin = avg Hb content of RBC
What is RDW?
Red cell distribution width = range of deviation around RBC size
What is in the white blood cell count?
Total WBC and breakdown of: Neutrophils Lymphocytes Monocytes Basophils Eosinophils
What of the platelets are measured in a FBC?
Platelet count and size
What does a blood film do?
Confirms number and morphology
How is a FBC processed?
Using optical scanner methods and presented in a cytogram
How are things shown in a cytogram?
Populations of cells are displayed in distinct clusters
What are the advantages of an automated haematology machine?
Efficient and cost effective Accurate and precise Multiple tests at a time Reduced labour requirements Accurate determination of red cell numbers
What are the disadvantages of an automated haematology machine?
When results are flagged, it needs labour intensive manual examination of blood smear
Comments on red cell morphology cannot be generated
Platelet clumps are counted as one, so low count
Expensive and high running cost
What is tear drop poikilocytosis seen in?
Myelofibrosis or bone marrow infiltration
