Red Blood Cell anomalies (1) Flashcards
Increased number of red cells with variation in size
Anisocytosis
Size of normal RBCs (normocytes)
6-8 um in diameter
Normal MCV value
80-100 fL
Larger than normal RBCs (>8.0 um), MCV > 100 fL, impaired DNA synthesis
Macrocytes
Smaller than normal RBCs (diameter < 6.0 um), seen when MCV is < 80 fL, defective hemoglobin formation
Microcytes
Four ways to detect anisocytosis
1) Using the nucleus of a small lymphocyte in a peripheral blood smear (PBS), 2) Using the MCV value, 3) Using the RBC histogram, 4) Using the RDW value
Average volume of individual RBCs
MCV
Visual display of cell size (X-axis) and cell frequency (Y-axis), provided by high-volume instruments
RBC histogram
Two parameters calculated from RBC histogram
MCV and RDW
RBC histogram range for RBCs
36 fL to 360 fL
MCV formula
MCV = HCT * 10 / RBC count
Decreased MCV
Microcytic < 80 fL, RDW > 14.5%
Normocytic MCV
80-100 fL, RDW 11.5 - 14.5%
Macrocytic MCV
> 100 fL, RDW > 14.5%
RDW in macrocytic and microcytic
Increased regardless of size
RBC histogram measurement range
Can measure cells as small as 24 fL
Effect of elevated leukocyte count on RBC histogram
Affects the RBC histogram
Shift to the right in RBC histogram
Indicates macrocytic RBCs
Shift to the left in RBC histogram
Indicates microcytic RBCs
Bimodal RBC histogram curve
Indicates two populations of RBCs, such as in blood transfusion, cold agglutinin disease, or hemolytic anemia with schistocytes
Wider or flattened RBC histogram curve
Indicates more variation in cell size, the population is not homogeneous
Methods to calculate RDW
RDW-CV (coefficient of variation), RDW-SD (standard deviation)
RDW-CV based on
Width of the RBC distribution curve and mean RBC size
RDW-SD based on
Measurement of the width of the RBC distribution curve at 20% above the baseline
RDW-CV reference range
11.5 - 14.5%
RDW-SD reference range
39 - 46 fL