II. Efficacy

  1. Complete Blood Count is over-utilized in acute infectious illness
    1. Does not distinguish Sepsis, Septic Joint, Bacterial Meningitis, Appendicitis, Diverticulitis, occult Bacterial Infection
    2. CBC is the “Last Bastion of the Intellectually Destitute” (Amal Mattu)
  2. References
    1. Cruz (2017) JAMA Pediatr 171(11):e172927 +PMID: 28892537 [PubMed]
    2. Pediatric EM Morsels (Fox)
      1. https://pedemmorsels.com/wbc-count-fever/

III. Physiology

  1. See Bone Marrow
  2. Bone Marrow produces stem cell lines
    1. Images
      1. HemeBloodCellOrigin.jpg
    2. Myeloid lines
      1. Erythroblasts (develop into erythrocytes)
      2. Myeloblasts (develop into Granulocytes)
      3. Megakaryocyte (develop into Platelets)
    3. Lymphocytic lines
      1. Lymphoblasts (develop into Lymphocytes)

IV. Technique: Specimen

  1. Specimen rejected if clotted
    1. Immediately mix specimen 10 times by gently inversion
  2. Tube type: Lavender or Purple Top
  3. Volume
    1. Adults: 3 ml (1 ml minimum)
    2. Children: 1 ml (0.3 ml in pediatric micro-container)

Images: Related links to external sites (from Bing)

Related Studies

Ontology: Complete Blood Count (C0009555)

Definition (NCI) The determination of the number of red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets in a blood sample.
Definition (NCI_NCI-GLOSS) A test to check the number of red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets in a sample of blood.
Concepts Laboratory Procedure (T059)
MSH D001772
SnomedCT 142816008, 165409003, 142820007, 26604007
LNC LP96793-2
English Blood Counts, Complete, Complete Blood Counts, Count, Complete Blood, Counts, Complete Blood, Full blood count, Full blood count NOS, Complete Blood Count, CBC (complete blood count), complete blood count (CBC), complete blood count (CBC) (lab test), Full Blood Count, FBC, blood test full count, Test;full blood count, complete blood count test (CBC), complete blood counts, full blood count test, Full blood count NOS (procedure), Full blood count (procedure), blood cell count, complete blood count, CBC, FBC - Full blood count, Complete blood count, Complete blood count (procedure), Complete blood count, NOS, CBC, NOS, Blood Cell Count, Blood Count, Complete, full blood count
German grosses Blutbild, CBC, komplettes Blutbild, FBC, Blutzellzählung, vollständige, Blutbild, Gesamt-, Gesamtblutbild
Italian Emocromo completo, Esame emocromocitometrico, Conta completa delle cellule del sangue
Dutch volledige bloedtelling, volbloedtelling, Bloedceltelling, complete
French NFS, Formule sanguine complète, FSC (formule sanguine complète), Numération-formule sanguine complète, Hémogramme complet, Numération sanguine complète, NFS complète, Numération globulaire complète, Examen hématologique complet, Numération-formule sanguine
Portuguese Hemograma total, Hemograma completo, Hemograma Completo, Contagem sanguínea completa
Spanish Recuento sanguíneo completo, RSC, Recuento Completo de Sangre, Full blood count NOS, hemograma completo, SAI, hemograma completo, SAI (procedimiento), hemograma completo (procedimiento), hemograma completo, recuento sanguíneo completo, Hemograma completo
Japanese 全血球数, CBC, ゼンケッキュウスウ, CBC
Czech Celkový krevní obraz, Kompletní krevní obraz, krevní panel
Hungarian CBC, Teljes vérkép, FBC
Norwegian Komplett blodcelletelling