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HOW TO INTERPRET YOUR LAB TESTS
Janice Price, M.Ed, RNSwedish Medical Center HIV
Research Program
TESTS
• CBC: Complete Blood Count
• Serum Chemistries
• Liver Function/ Amylase
• Lipids: Blood Fats
• Immune System: CD4 & Viral Load
CBC: Complete Blood Count
• Red Blood Cells: RBC
• White Blood Cells:WBC
• Platelets: Plts
• Serum/Plasma
Blood Cell Types
Bone Marrow
• All Blood Cells made in bone marrow.
• Bone Marrow is the spongy centers of bones sometimes seen in cuts of meat
Stem Cells
• Stem cells are young cells
• All blood cells start as stem cells
• They get “drafted” as RBCs, WBCs or platelets depending on the body’s needs
Red Blood Cells
• Called erythrocytes
• “cytes” = cells
• Shaped like bagel with hole covered over
• Filled with hemoglobin that carries oxygen from the lungs to every cell in the body.
Utah State University
White Blood Cells
• WBCs are disease fighters
• Some make antibodies and some fight invaders directly
• Divided into categories depending on function and what they look like.
Types of White Cells
• Lymphocytes: B and T cells. Agranulocytes
• Granulocytes: polymorphonucleocoytes mostly neutrophils (55-80%), also basophils and eosonophils
• Monocytes: mature into macrophages (big eaters)
A macrophage attacking a bacteria with a cellular extension called a pseudopod
Abbreviations
• RBC = Red Blood Cell
• WBC = White Blood Cell
• HCT = Hematocrit
• Hbg = Hemoglobin
• ANC = Absolute Neutrophil Count
CBC
TESTS OF IMMUNE FUNCTION
A human cell infected with a rhinovirus ruptures, relasing millions of new viruses
A human T-helper cell is under attack by HIV virus
Viral Load Tests
• PCR: Most common. Usually expressed has HIV-1 PCR in copies per milliliter. Roche Amplicor
• bDNA: values are different. Usually ½ of PCR value
• NASBA: nucleic acid sequence based amplification. Values are also different
UNDETECTABLE VIRAL LOAD DOES NOT MEAN NO
VIRUS PRESENT
Remember: there are other places for virus to hide
Viral Load Expressed as Log
10 x = viral load
Genotype/Phenotype
Blood Types