Red blood cell count

[Noseda]

What is the blood count for red cells in a man of 69 please.

[clivealive Forum Support]

"The normal range in men is approximately 4.7 to 6.1 million cells/ul (microliter). The normal range in women range from 4.2 to 5.4 million cells/ul, according to NIH (National Institutes of Health) data. Hemoglobin is a protein in the red blood cells that carries oxygen and gives blood its red colour".

[Noseda in reply to clivealive]

Thank you, my husband had two units in a blood transfusion yesterday, hope his health improves soon. He can not take iron by mouth, it gives him severe cramps. We can not get much information from our doctor.

[clivealive Forum Support in reply to Noseda]

You have come to the Pernicious Anaemia community pages. P.A. is slightly different to Iron deficiency anaemia although both can be present at the same time. Does your husband have P.A?

If your husband had a low RBC hopefully the transfusion will give him a bit of a boost.

I wish you both well.

[Noseda in reply to clivealive]

Sorry, I could not find a page for RBC, perhaps you could help me find it?, thank you.

[clivealive Forum Support in reply to Noseda]

You are not alone as I too cannot find a community that deals with Iron Deficiency/Anaemia.

However there are others on here who may be able to give you some advice as I am not a medically trained person.

Any ideas Gambit62 or fbirder ?

[Noseda in reply to clivealive]

Thank you clivealive. Hope some one can help.

[Foggyme Administrator in reply to Noseda]

Hi Noseda.

Here's something that will help you interpret RBC results:

labtestsonline.org.uk/under...

If you search the same site there's more informationabout RBC's...and all sorts of other interesting things about blood, blood tests, and iron.

Also might find this site if interest - deals with all sorts of anaemias (there are lots), including iron deficiency anaemia:

irondisorders.org

You don't say much about your husbands medical history (i.e. does he have pernicious anaemia or PA)...just hope that he's seeing a haematologist and having investigations to determine the cause of his anaemia.

Hope the informationhelps.

Good luck and post again if you need more help 👍

[Noseda in reply to Foggyme]

Thank you very much, we will take your advice, so far we have only seen our doctor, who sent my husband for a blood test, but I really think we need to see a haematologist, as you suggest.

[Foggyme Administrator in reply to Noseda]

Good luck Noseda. Post again if you need more support or advice.

Incidentally, has you GP tested serum B12 and folate levels...a distinct possibility if absorption problems prove to be the issue...might be worth asking...

👍

[Gambit62 Administrator in reply to clivealive]

iron deficiency and iron based anaemias are potential symptoms of a lot of illnesses/medical conditions - including absorption problems and bleeding problems - rather than being specifically identified as illnesses in themselves so not surprised that there isn't a specific forum for iron based anaemia on HU.

[Noseda]

We have been told that as his count is so low, that no amount of iron rich food would help, the only thing was to have a blood transfusion. Thank you.

[Amesbury]

My Hb was very low last year and I had two blood transfusions. When I didn't have the expected improvement in Hb the hospital involved a haematologist who checked b12 and vit D - both well below normal range. Since I've had b12 injections my Hb has risen to 13 (highest ever for me) and I've taken no iron supplements at all. So this could be something to look at if the transfusions don't work as well as expected.

[Noseda]

Thank you, very helpful.