Today Suzanne talked with her father and her sister and found out more about the circumstances of her birth. Her mother's blood type was B-. Her father's, O+. Suzanne was a second child. So her mother was Rh-, her father Rh+, and her sister was born before they knew to test mothers and babies for Rh compatibility. Or at least before they did it in Globe. Nowadays every Rh- mother with a possibly Rh+ fetus is treated with a drug that prevents her from mounting an immune response, and protects future babies. But Suzanne's mother had no such medical advice, for her girls born 1943 and 1955.

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Seems like I'm circling all around these blood topics....because they are circular, they interrelate in many ways. ( This one's about HEMOGLOBIN. )

If LOW RBC, Hgb, or Hct
Then evaluate MCV & MCHC to determine if anemia is:
-microcytic hypochromic (MCV < 82 fL, MCHC < 30 g/dL)
Iron deficiency anemia
Thalassemia
Sideroblastic anemia
Anemia of chronic disease (some cases)
Pyridoxine Responsive anemia (B6 deficiency)
Chronic blood loss
Lead poisoning
-normocytic normochromic (MCV 82-97 fL, MCHC 32-36 g/dL)
Acute blood loss
Early stage Iron deficiency anemia
Hemolytic anemia from any cause
Anemia of Chronic Disease (ACD)
Hereditary spherocytosis – osmotic fragility test
Aplastic Anemia
-macrocytic (MCV > 97 fL) (remember theoretical upper limit of 37 g/dL for MCHC)
B12 deficiency
Folate deficiency
Myelodysplastic Syndrome
Hypothyroidism
Cancer chemotherapy
Alcohol abuse
Liver disease
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http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/7742873.stm
A new serum testing technique allows researchers to compare the mothers genes with the child's, and get a better idea if the child will inherit any of several hereditary diseases. In Britain 1/25 people carries the gene for cystic fibrosis. Up until now the only way to test for CF in a fetus was amniocentesis. The new genetic testing can also detect beta thalassemia or sickle cell disease.

IDA most common
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A legitimate indication for giving pneumovax is sickle cell anemia, because the destruction of the spleen causes increased susceptibility to encapsulated organisms including Strep, H. flu and Salmonella. One must administer the vaccine before the spleen is fibrosed, to give the individual ample opportunity to develop an effective immune response to these organisms. Sickle cell patients are more likely to suffer from salmonella osteomyelitis, which can result in avascular necrosis, esp of the femoral head.

What three serum findings can each independently justify a diagnosis of anemia?
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Aka Lymphoid neoplasms, lymphomas a heterogenous group of neoplasms that arise in the lymphatic and reticuloendothelial (RE) systems.
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How do you get the smell of mothballs out of something plastic?
Thanks.
( Wikipedia on health effects of napthalene, the main ingredient in older mothballs )