What are red blood cell indices?
Definition Red blood cell indices are measurements that describe the size and oxygen-carrying protein (hemoglobin) content of red blood cells. The indices are used to help in the differential diagnosis of anemia. They are also called red cell absolute values or erythrocyte indices. Purpose Anemia includes a variety of conditions with the same outcome: a person’s blood cannot carry as much oxygen as it should. A healthy person has an adequate number of correctly sized red blood cells that contain enough hemoglobin to carry sufficient oxygen to all the body’s tissues. An anemic person has red blood cells that are either too small or too few in number. As a result, the heart and lungs must work harder to make up for the lack of oxygen delivered to the tissues by the blood. Anemia is caused by many different diseases or disorders. The first step in finding the cause is to determine what type of anemia the person has. Red blood cell indices help to classify the anemias. Precautions Certain
