A hematology test is a measurement of blood to help diagnose and monitor many conditions. This lesson will explore specific hematology tests along with normal values and their interpretations.

Hematological tests can evaluate numerous conditions involving blood and its components. They can also be used to diagnose inflammation, anemia, infection, hemophilia, blood-clotting disorders, leukemia, and response to chemotherapy, among many other things. Let’s take a look at some of these tests.

Complete Blood Count (CBC)

The complete blood count (CBC) is one of the most commonly ordered blood tests. The complete blood count is the calculation of the cellular (formed elements) of blood. These calculations are generally determined by special machines that analyze the different components of blood in less than a minute.

A major portion of the complete blood count is the measure of the concentration of white blood cells, red blood cells, and platelets in the blood.

What are the components of the complete blood count (CBC)?

The complete blood count, or CBC, lists a number of many important values. Typically, it includes the following:

• White blood cell count (WBC or leukocyte count)
• WBC differential count
• Red blood cell count (RBC or erythrocyte count)
• Hematocrit (Hct)
• Hemoglobin (Hbg)
• Mean corpuscular volume (MCV)
• Mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MCH)
• Mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration (MCHC)
• Red cell distribution width (RDW)
• Platelet count
• Mean Platelet Volume (MPV)