A general blood test is a fairly quick, reliable and most comprehensive diagnostic method, according to the results of which a lot can be said about the state of health.
Correctly deciphering a general blood test can only be done by a doctor. But today we will try to do it too. To begin with, let's decide what the general blood test shows. So, as a result of its implementation, you can find out how fast the red blood cells settle, about the number of red blood cells and white blood cells, as well as the hemoglobin content and white blood cell count.
Using this study, pathologies such as blood cancer, anemia, and diseases of an infectious-inflammatory nature are revealed. In addition, you can determine the allergic mood of the blood and its coagulability.
And this is far from all that a general blood test can say. How to take it? There are no special requirements. It is only important to fulfill one condition, namely, before eating blood, do not eat. In other words, a complete blood count is given on an empty stomach.
Now let's talk about how to decipher some indicators of this laboratory study. We will begin our review with red blood cells. Normally, in a healthy person in the 1st cubic millimeter of blood they contain four and a half - five million. A decrease in this indicator indicates the presence of stress or increased physical activity. This is possible with prolonged fasting. Elevated red blood cells are a sign of leukemia, congenital heart defects and chronic lung diseases. In the case when the number of red blood cells is significantly reduced, an additional examination should be performed to identify pathologies such as anemia, leukemia, and metastases of malignant tumors.
Regarding the erythrocyte sedimentation rate, or as ESR is also said, it is important to know the following: this indicator varies slightly between men and women. Normally, ESR in women does not exceed fifteen mm / hour, and in men - ten mm / hour. Deviation from the norm upwards indicates the presence of an acute or chronic inflammatory process. This can be pneumonia, kidney disease, tuberculosis, myocardial infarction, osteomyelitis, poisoning and the like. Sometimes this indicator increases after surgery or as a result of taking medications.
A low level of ESR is observed with a decrease in muscle mass, starvation, with oral administration of corticosteroids.
The next indicator is the level of hemoglobin. For men, this indicator varies from one hundred thirty to one hundred and seventy grams per liter. In women, it is in the range of one hundred twenty - one hundred and fifty grams per liter. For children, the norm is one hundred twenty - one hundred forty grams per liter. Hemoglobin level decreases with large blood loss, iron deficiency, as well as in the presence of blood diseases. This also includes those chronic pathologies that are not associated with hemolytic diseases.
A high level of hemoglobin is characteristic of those people who have pulmonary heart failure, congenital heart disease and some blood diseases. Sometimes hemoglobin rises as a result of some physiological reasons, for example, significant physical activity.
So we got to the white blood cells. On average, in human blood contains from 4 to 9 • 109 / l of leukocytes. They can be of several types, namely lymphocytes, monocytes and so on. In that case, if it comes to counting all these species, then an indicator such as a leukocyte formula is implied . An increase or decrease in the level of white blood cells in the blood is always alarming, because it can indicate the presence of a large number of diseases. In this regard, it will be necessary to undergo an additional examination. Only in this case it will be possible to establish a more accurate diagnosis.
So, as you all could see now, a general blood test is quite an important study, and it is almost impossible to do without it, because only with it you can draw the appropriate conclusions about the presence of a particular disease and the advisability of other diagnostic methods.