[PCV in newborn babies: a comparison of the hematologic values from the coulter counter with the centrifuged PCV (author's transl)].
The packed cell volume (PCV) is an essential index in the evaluation of distressed newborn babies and often allows an early diagnosis of a hyperviscosity syndrome to be made. The PCV can be measured easily and very accurately by centrifuging a heelprick blood sample in a heparinized glass capillary (PCV-c). Commonly the red blood picture including PCV is determined automatically by means of a Coulter Counter (CC) thus allowing the increasing demands of a bigger unit to be coped with. The comparison of the hematologic values (red coll count, Hgb, PCV) as given by the CC, with the PCV-c shows an excellent correlation between red cell count, Hgb and PCV-c and no statistically significant difference of the mean PCV-values of both methods. However, as the PCV-c proves to be more reliable, a wide scattering of the individual PCV-values obtained by the CC is found. Furthermore there is a marked tendency to lower PCV-readings by the CC in the critical zone above 68%, eventually leading to a delay in the diagnosis of a hyperviscosity syndrome and therefore, at least in neonatology, the PCV-c should be preferred.
D001724:Birth Weight; D004906:Erythrocyte Count; D005865:Gestational Age; D006400:Hematocrit / Q000379:methods*; D006452:Hemoglobinometry; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn
Hämatokritbestimmung beim Neugeborenen: Vergleich zwischen der Coulterschen Methode und dem zentrifugierten Wert.