Complete Blood Count (CBC)

The CBC is one of the most widely ordered blood test. It is frequently used as a broad screening test to check for such disorders as anemia, infection, and many other diseases. It is actually a panel of tests that examines different parts of the blood and includes the following:

WBC—White blood cells are the body’s primary defense against disease. White blood cells help fight infection.
RBC—Red blood cells are responsible for carrying oxygen and carbon dioxide to all cells. Iron deficiency will lower RBC.
Hemoglobin—A chemical compound inside red cells that transports oxygen through the blood stream to all cells of the body. Oxygen is needed for healthy organs. Hemoglobin gives the red color to blood.
Hematocrit—Hematocrit measures the amount of space red blood cells take up in the blood. It is reported as a percentage.
Lymphocytes—The results of this and basophils, eosinophils, monocytes and neutrophils deal with white blood cell function. Important to the body’s defense against infection. Also important in the assessment of nutritional status.
Monocytes—The results of this and basophils, eosinophils, lymphocytes, and neutrophils deal with white blood cell function. Important to the body’s defense against infection. Also important in the assessment of nutritional status.
MCH Mean—Corpuscular Hemoglobin is one way to measure the average hemoglobin concentration within red blood cells, which varies from normal with different diseases.
MCHC Mean—corpuscular hemoglobin concentration
MCV Mean—corpuscular volume measures red blood cell volume.
Neutrophils—The results of this and basophils, eosinophils, lymphocytes, and monocytes deal with white blood cell function. Important to the body’s defense against infection and also important in the assessment of nutritional status
Platelets—Blood cell particles involved with the forming of blood clots.
RDW—Red cell distribution width (RDW) is a calculation of the variation in the size of your RBC’s. In some anemias, such as pernicious anemia, the amount of variation (anisocytosis) in RBC size (along with variation in shape – poikilocytosis) causes an increase in the RDW.