What is another term used for the blood test called hematocrit?

What is another term used for the blood test called hematocrit?

• A. Mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration
• B. Packed cell volume
• C. Mean hemoglobin ratio
• D. Erythrocyte concentration

Answer: (B)

Hematocrit is the fraction of a blood sample that is made up of red blood cells, usually shown as a percentage of the total volume. It’s determined by spinning a small blood sample in a capillary tube so the red cells pack at the bottom and the plasma remains on top; you then compare the height of the packed red cells to the overall column height. That packed-cell measurement is what “packed cell volume” refers to, so the two terms describe the same test. Other options describe different things: mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration measures how much hemoglobin is in each red blood cell, not the overall red cell volume as a fraction of blood. Erythrocyte concentration implies the number of red blood cells per volume (RBC count), not the proportion of blood volume they occupy. The remaining term isn’t a standard hematology measure. So packed cell volume is the correct equivalent term for hematocrit.

Hematocrit is the fraction of a blood sample that is made up of red blood cells, usually shown as a percentage of the total volume. It’s determined by spinning a small blood sample in a capillary tube so the red cells pack at the bottom and the plasma remains on top; you then compare the height of the packed red cells to the overall column height. That packed-cell measurement is what “packed cell volume” refers to, so the two terms describe the same test.

Other options describe different things: mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration measures how much hemoglobin is in each red blood cell, not the overall red cell volume as a fraction of blood. Erythrocyte concentration implies the number of red blood cells per volume (RBC count), not the proportion of blood volume they occupy. The remaining term isn’t a standard hematology measure. So packed cell volume is the correct equivalent term for hematocrit.