Interpreting the CBC

Question 1

RBC is low. Diagnosis?

Answer 1

anemia

Question 2

RBC is high. What is this called?

Answer 2

polycythemia/erythrocytosis

Question 3

Total WBC is high. Diagnosis?

Answer 3

infection, inflammation, tissue necrosis, leukemia

Question 4

What is leukocytosis?

Answer 4

elevated total WBC

Question 5

What is neutrophilia?

Answer 5

increased total neutrophil count

Question 6

Neutrophils are high. Diagnosis?

Answer 6

acute bacterial infection or a myeloproliferative disorder

Question 7

Segmented neutrophils are high. Diagnosis?

Answer 7

tissue necrosis

Question 8

Hypermature segmented neutrophils are high. Diagnosis?

Answer 8

liver disease, Down Syndrome, megaloblastic or pernicious anemia

Question 9

Band neutrophils are high. Diagnosis?

Answer 9

overwhelming, acute bacterial infection

Question 10

EO is high. Diagnosis?

Answer 10

parasites, bronchoallergic reaction, or skin rash

Question 11

BASO is high. Diagnosis?

Answer 11

hypersensitivity reaction

Question 12

MONO is high. Diagnosis?

Answer 12

late acute infection or chronic infection; Hodgkin’s

disease, multiple myeloma, some leukemias, or systemic lupus erythematosus

Question 13

Lymphocytes are high. Diagnosis?

Answer 13

acute viral infection; chronic infection; early HIV; CLL

Question 14

What is low WBC called?

Answer 14

leukopenia

Question 15

WBC is low. Diagnosis?

Answer 15

damaged bone marrow (chemo, radiation)

Question 16

Neutrophils are low. Causes?

Answer 16

severe prolonged infection; splenomegaly; use of damaging drugs

Question 17

MONO is low. Causes and diagnosis?

Answer 17

glucocorticoid therapy; hairy-cell leukemia or aplastic anemia

Question 18

Lymphocytes are low. Diagnosis?

Answer 18

HIV/AIDS

Question 19

HCT is elevated. Causes?

Answer 19

hyperglycemia or hypernatremia

Question 20

RBC is high. Causes?

Answer 20

cardiopulmonary diseases; living at high altitude; dehydration; liver or renal tumor

Question 21

What causes nutritional anemia?

Answer 21

iron, folate, or vitamin B12 deficiencies

Question 22

What causes acute anemia?

Answer 22

hemorrhage, hemolytic or hypersensitivity reactions

Question 23

What causes mild anemia?

Answer 23

renal failure, chemo, leukemia, hemoglobinopathy, thalassemia, age, pregnancy

Question 24

RET is high. Diagnosis?

Answer 24

hemorrhage or destruction; pregnancy

Question 25

RET is low. Diagnosis?

Answer 25

bone marrow hypofunction

Question 26

What does HGB tell?

Answer 26

amount of hemoglobin (oxygen carrying capacity of the blood)

Question 27

HGB is low. Cause and diagnosis?

Answer 27

blood loss, peripheral destruction, or ineffective erythropoiesis in bone marrow; anemia

Question 28

HGB is high. Causes and diagnosis?

Answer 28

reactive changes (smoking, renal cell carcinoma) or bone marrow neoplasm (polycythemia vera)

Question 29

What does HCT tell?

Answer 29

the volume of red blood cells in whole blood

Question 30

Why would the HCT be decreased?

Answer 30

anemia, fluid overload

Question 31

Why would the HCT be increased?

Answer 31

erythrocytosis/polycythemia or dehydration

Question 32

What does the MCV tell?

Answer 32

mean size of RBCs

Question 33

MCV is low. Causes and diagnosis?

Answer 33

iron deficiency anemia or thalassemia (Microcytosis)

Question 34

MCV is high. Causes and diagnosis?

Answer 34

megaloblastic anemia (Macrocytosis)

Question 35

What does MCH tell?

Answer 35

the mean quantity of hemoglobin in a single RBC

Question 36

MCH is low. Causes?

Answer 36

Hypochromatic, iron deficiency anemia

Question 37

MCH is high. Causes?

Answer 37

Hyperchromatic, megaloblastic anemia

Question 38

What does MCHC tell?

Answer 38

avg concentration of hemoglobin in an RBC

Question 39

When would the MCHC be decreased?

Answer 39

moderate to severe microcytic anemia

Question 40

When would the MCHC be increased?

Answer 40

hereditary spherocytosis

Question 41

What does the RDW tell?

Answer 41

the measure of variability of RBC size (the wider the cell histogram, the higher the RDW)

Question 42

When would RDW be increased?

Answer 42

anemia, disease

Question 43

When would RDW be decreased?

Answer 43

RBC destruction