Blood tests

Hemoglobin and iron are the main indicators of anemia. They
will also note the size and shape or the red blood cells.
Low iron/hemoglobin results in smaller, less uniform red
blood cells. The first question to answer is "Is the problem
due to loss of blood, or a problem in the production of red
blood cells."

Hope this helps. I'm NOT an MD, but I just went through the
exact same thing.

"Ryan" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

When a doctor requests a patient to have a blood test and
asks, among

other

Quoted message said:

things, for "blood count" and to check for anemia, liver
and kidney function, what information is generally given?
Meaning what exactly is "counted" and what can be
determined?

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Ryan said:

When a doctor requests a patient to have a blood test and
asks, among other things, for "blood count" and to check
for anemia, liver and kidney function, what information is
generally given? Meaning what exactly is "counted" and
what can be determined?

A "CBC" (complete blood count) generally will include a
white blood cell count, hemoglobin, hematocrit, and platelet
count, along with a differential count of the various types
of white blood cells. The CBC is most typically used to
screen for a variety of hematologic disorders (commonly
anemia) and infection. It is not absolutely diagnostic of
anything, really, although in a clinical context, certain
things may be inferred. If a CBC is abnormal in any
significant way, follow-up studies are usually required to
narrow down the diagnosis.