MT Training > Laboratory tests

Laboratory tests are really a mixed bag. Sometimes the word is used such as “hematocrit;” sometimes, “crit,” and even “HCT.” These short forms need interpretation. It has to make sense to the report. When you get to the reports sections, you will see what we mean.

The following list of tests is by no means a complete list; however, it contains most of the terms you will hear or see relating to a patient chart.

In the human body, an adult female has a blood volume of 65 milliliters per kilogram of body weight (written 65 ml/kg); a male has 69 ml/kg. Plasma volume is 40 ml/kg in a woman and 39 ml/kg in a man. The blood volume of the average person is 5 to 6 quarts (usually measured in milliliters or centimeters – written as cc or ml). Three types of cells predominate in the composition of blood: red corpuscles [core-puss-sulls] or red blood cells (RBCs), or erythrocytes (airith-row-sights), white corpuscles, or white blood cells (WBCs), or leukocytes (loo-ko-sights), and platelets. Plasma is the liquid, which transports these cells throughout the body.

A red pigment known as hemoglobin (hee-moe-globe-in) is found in RBCs. Mean corpuscular volume (MCV) describes the red blood cells in individual cell size. Mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MCHC) describes the concentration of hemoglobin in grams per 100 ml of RBCs). Mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MCH) represents the hemoglobin content of each RBC. Hematocrit (HCT) is a test which measures the cells compared to the plasma volume.

Knowing these terms, as with all of the terms, abbreviations, short usages, value and expressed-in values discussed below, or being able to refer to them (i.e., in this book), prepares you to quickly identify the correct term in your mind to understand the information you are dealing with.

Blood grouping for humans are divided into four groups, which make up the ABO system. They are A, B, AB, and O. Typing blood also includes an Rh factor (rhesus monkey agglutinogen).

Many tests are named after their “inventor.” One such test is performed to determine the Rh factor and is called a Coombs’ test – named after someone called Coomb or Coombs. A vaccine to prevent Rh problems is called RhoGAM. The following are reference tables for lab blood tests.

The following table lists the most common laboratory tests performed on the blood.

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