Which index indicates the average hemoglobin content per red blood cell?

Which index indicates the average hemoglobin content per red blood cell?

• A. Mean corpuscular volume
• B. Mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration
• C. Mean corpuscular hemoglobin
• D. Hematocrit

Answer: (C)

The metric that describes how much hemoglobin each red blood cell contains on average is mean corpuscular hemoglobin. It directly reflects the Hb content per cell and is typically expressed as picograms per cell. It’s calculated from the overall hemoglobin concentration and the red blood cell count (roughly Hgb × 10 divided by RBC). This differs from the mean corpuscular volume, which tells you how big the cell is, and from the mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration, which indicates how tightly Hb is packed within the cell’s volume. Hematocrit is the proportion of blood volume made up by red cells. Clinically, a low mean corpuscular hemoglobin points to hypochromia (less Hb per cell), while a higher value indicates more Hb per cell.

The metric that describes how much hemoglobin each red blood cell contains on average is mean corpuscular hemoglobin. It directly reflects the Hb content per cell and is typically expressed as picograms per cell. It’s calculated from the overall hemoglobin concentration and the red blood cell count (roughly Hgb × 10 divided by RBC). This differs from the mean corpuscular volume, which tells you how big the cell is, and from the mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration, which indicates how tightly Hb is packed within the cell’s volume. Hematocrit is the proportion of blood volume made up by red cells. Clinically, a low mean corpuscular hemoglobin points to hypochromia (less Hb per cell), while a higher value indicates more Hb per cell.