A complete blood cell (CBC) count may be ordered as part of an general check-up, or to test for certain conditions such as inflammation, infection, and anemia. A CBC is actually comprised of several different tests that are run on the blood, including white and red blood cell counts, white blood cell differential, hemoglobin, hematocrit, mean corpuscular volume, mean corpuscular hemoglobin, mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration, red cell distribution width and platelet count.
A blood sample will be taken, normally from the arm. If several tests are ordered, more than one vial of blood will be taken.
The CBC is used by physicians to check overall health status, response to a course of treatment, or more specific conditions such as blood loss, infection, leukemia, sickle cell disease, abnormal clotting.
