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The Hematocrit Test



 Submitted by Medical Health Test Team on May 13, 2010
The Hematocrit test is done in order to check for anemia, polycythemia, dehydration, a patient’s response to treatment for polycythemias or anemia, and blood transfusion decisions for people with severe symptomatic anemia as well as the effectiveness of the blood transfusions. The Hematocrit test is ordered as part of a blood test to check a person’s complete blood count or CBC. The test can be repeated at regular intervals to check for several other conditions as well. It is especially important for checking the way a person is recovering from dehydration, to monitor the treatment for anemia, to check the diagnosis of polycythemia and to monitor a patient if he has ongoing bleeding.

Meaning of test results: If a person has decreased hematocrit then it means that he or she has anemia, which is to the result of iron deficiency. You may have to get other tests done to zero down on the exact cause of anemia. Some of the other probable causes of anemia include malignancies, cirrhosis of liver, recent bleeding, or, vitamin and mineral deficiencies.

One of the most common causes of increased hematocrit is dehydration. So, with enough fluids, hematocrit can become normal. However, this may reflect a condition known as polycynthemia vera, a health condition in which a person has more than the normal number of red blood cells. This can happen if he or she has a problem with the bone marrow or if they do not have adequate lung function. If you ever find that you have a persistently high hematocrit, then you need to consult a doctor.

What you should know: Pregnant women generally have slightly decreased hematocrit levels because of the excess fluid in the blood. If you live at high altitudes, then too you may have increased hematocrit values. This is the way the body responds to the decreased oxygen at high altitudes.

Hematocrit is measured from a blood sample through an automated machine that can make other measurements at the same time. These machines calculate the hematocrit by determining the level of hemoglobin as well as the average volume of the red blood cells. A manual method known as a centrifuge is also used to determine the hematocrit. When blood is centrifuged, then the red cells will generally be packed right in the bottom of the tube. The proportion of the total blood and the red cells will be measured visually.
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