Peripheral Blood Analysis.

The complete Peripheral Blood Analysis is:

Complete blood count + platelet + reticulocyte

It includes:

1. COMPLETE BLOOD

a) Red series (erythrocyte)

• Erythrocytes (RBC).
• Hemoglobin.
• Erythrocyte constants (MCV, MCH, MCHC) when the complete blood count is done by a machine.
• Hematocrit.
• Description of the red series (color, size, shape of erythrocytes, granulations).
• Reticulocyte.

b) Sedimentation (The rate of erythrocyte sedimentation)

c) White series (leukocyte)

• Leukocytes (WBC).
• Leukocyte Formula.
• Description of the white series (shape, size, granulations).

2. PLATELET SERIES

• Platelets (Plt).
• Description of the platelet series (size, granules).

Today, peripheral blood analysis in most laboratories is performed using Cell Counter machines. With today's clinical laboratory rules to get the complete blood analysis, you need to write:

1. Hemogram.
2. Description of the morphology of the red series (and of the other two series, leukocyte and platelet).
3. Reticulocyte.
4. Erythrocyte sedimentation rate.
5. Leukocyte formula on a peripheral blood smear.
6. Counted platelet on a peripheral blood smear (the exact number of platelets is that of the platelets counted on a peripheral blood smear and by a specialist).

If "Complete blood + formula" is noted, the patient does not get platelets and reticulocyte. So, this way of writing for peripheral blood analysis is incorrect (the leukocyte formula is included within the complete blood).

If the analysis is not complete, often the hematologist is forced to send the patient again for blood analysis (at a cost to the patient and the laboratory).

The Hematologist should not give an answer even when one of the elements of the Peripheral Blood Analysis is missing.