Blood results, expert advice needed?

Question

I went to give blood the other day and they said my iron levels were too low.

They wrote back saying I need to see a doctor.

Here are the results:
Haemoglobin 11.7 g/dl
MCV 86.0 fl
MCH 27.8 pg
Platelets 306
White Blood cells 8.8

I am not anaemic am I?

Answer 1

Your Haemoglobin is just below the lower limit of normal.
Your MCV and MCH are within normal limits. So no Iron deficiency anaemia.

You might have been just after a menstruation period at the time you had the sample taken.

It is probably a very good idea to see a doctor so that a follow up tests with a microscopic exam could be done as well.

This will surely reassure you.

Best of luck

Answer 2

Your anemia is mild based on the above results, and the real question becomes "Are you symptomatic?" By that I mean, do you feel fatigued and short of breath following only moderate exertion? If this is the case, then you probably need to work with your physician to explore possible causes of your anemia (almost certainly nutritional or menstrual in origin). Otherwise, there is really no reason you can't have an 11.7 g/dL Hgb and still be perfectly healthy- you just can't give your red cells away to other people. Good Luck.

Answer 3

The normal haemoglobin in a healthy adult is 12 to 18 gm/dl; since you are very slightly below that, you are bordering on anaemia. At your level, most blood banks will not accept donations, both for your safety, and for the safety of the recipient, who will presumably need iron-rich blood to deal with trauma, surgery, or some other condition.

I would assume that your doctor will prescribe an iron supplement.

Answer 4

If they said to see a doctor, see a doctor!

However, sometimes, the rules for when you can give blood are higher than what is termed anemia. So, you may not have anemia, but best to see the doctor to be sure. You may be able to correct this easily by changing your diet or taking iron pills. Also, it's worse if you're a guy rather than a girl, because girls lose iron every month during their period.

Answer 5

yes, you are anemic according to the laboratory definitions, but it's borderline. most blood donation facilities have rules prohibiting donations from people who have anemia (defined as hemoglobin less than 12), because they wouldn't want to drop your hemoglobing too low- hemoglobin is the protein in your RBCs that carry most of the oxygen in your bloodstream, so you don't want it to drop too low.

it's true the most common cause of anemia in young healthy females is iron deficiency, most likely from menstrual blood loss or from dietary deficiency. another possiblity is sickle cell trait.
however, your MCV and MCH are both normal, which would go against those two possibilities- in both cases, the MCV and MCH should be low. my best guess is that you're not iron deficient, and you're just normally in the lower range of normal all the time. if they repeated your blood counts on another day (perhaps not right in the middle of your menstrual cycle?), then your hemoglobin might be completely normal.

Answer 6

go see your doctor. your haemoglobin is a bit on the low side but would doubt your anaemic just may be given prescription of iron tablets.

Answer 7

See your doctor. You are anemic. You need a history and physical and more tests to determine the type of anemia.

Answer 8

You are asking a bunch of random strangers to analyse your blood results?
Just hope you don't follow whatever advice you get!

Answer 9

If you need an expert's advice......... go to the doctor. Not everyone on here is a doctor, you'll get too many conflicting answers.

Answer 10

I agree with `Dan O` if you are really concerned.... go see your Doctor, this is not really the site to ask this kind of question. Have a nice day :-)