0000000000639890
AUTHOR
Alessandra Picanza
Influence of spurious dilution and hyperglycemia on erythrocytes and platelets evaluated with two different hematological analyzers
The integrity of whole blood samples may be compromised by suboptimal collection practices. Therefore, we investigated the influence of spurious hyperglycemia on erythrocytes and platelets, assessed with two hematological analyzers using optical or impedance technique. Three K2EDTA blood specimens were collected from 12 healthy subjects, pooled and divided into four aliquots. The first aliquot was left untreated (glucose concentration 4.4 mmol/L), whereas scalar amounts of standard 5% glucose solution were added to the remaining, generating glucose contamination of 5% (19.2 mmol/L), 10% (33 mmol/L) and 20% (62 mmol/L). Hematological testing was then performed using Siemens Advia 2120 and Sy…
Red blood cell distribution width: A simple parameter with multiple clinical applications
The red blood cell distribution width (RDW) is a simple and inexpensive parameter, which reflects the degree of heterogeneity of erythrocyte volume (conventionally known as anisocytosis), and is traditionally used in laboratory hematology for differential diagnosis of anemias. Nonetheless, recent evidence attests that anisocytosis is commonplace in human disorders such as cardiovascular disease, venous thromboembolism, cancer, diabetes, community-acquired pneumonia, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, liver and kidney failure, as well as in other acute or chronic conditions. Despite some demographic and analytical issues related to the routine assessment that may impair its clinical usef…