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What Does My CBC Test Report Indicate?
Posted on
Sat, 14 Feb 2015
Medically reviewed by
Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team
Sat, 14 Feb 2015
Answered on
Fri, 13 Mar 2015
Last reviewed on
Question : I have taken yearly tests for my father and found CBC value of 40mm what does it mean, He is having hiccups and when it comes it is there for days together. We have taken scans and everything cam out normal, He is having cholesterol levels and has reduced from around 235 to 219. Please advise on cbc
Brief Answer:
Please find details below
Detailed Answer:
Hi XXXX,
Thanks for writing in to us.
I have read through your query in detail.
The reports have been seen by me.
The CBC result 40 mm is the ESR as seen in the report. ESR is erythrocyte sedimentation rate. It is slightly high in your father. By itself this does not point to any illness or disease. However if a person has a disease then the improvement or recovery of disease is measured by the ESR value. In other words ESR shows the level of inflammatory activity in your body but will not say where is the problem, if any. It can even be raised in conditions like arthritis and infections. Therefore your father needs a complete clinical examination to know if there is any inflammatory process inside the body. An increased ESR is usually followed by doing other tests for inflammation. ESR can also be increased due to high cholesterol. There is another test called the C reactive protein (CRP) test which will confirm any inflammatory process.
The cholestrol lowering from 235 mg/ dl to 219 mg/ dl is an improvement. If he is taking medications for lowering cholesterol then he must continue taking it. The cholesterol is borderline high and if he is not on medication then slight diet changes can bring it to normal range.
For the hiccups it is best to consult ENT specialist and know the cause and treatment. Doing a chest X ray might be required especially if he is a smoker.
Hope this answers your question. Please feel free to correct any oversight in my interpretation of your problems and discuss them in detail as per your requirements.
Hope your query is answered.
Do write back if you have any doubts.
Regards,
Dr.Vivek
Please find details below
Detailed Answer:
Hi XXXX,
Thanks for writing in to us.
I have read through your query in detail.
The reports have been seen by me.
The CBC result 40 mm is the ESR as seen in the report. ESR is erythrocyte sedimentation rate. It is slightly high in your father. By itself this does not point to any illness or disease. However if a person has a disease then the improvement or recovery of disease is measured by the ESR value. In other words ESR shows the level of inflammatory activity in your body but will not say where is the problem, if any. It can even be raised in conditions like arthritis and infections. Therefore your father needs a complete clinical examination to know if there is any inflammatory process inside the body. An increased ESR is usually followed by doing other tests for inflammation. ESR can also be increased due to high cholesterol. There is another test called the C reactive protein (CRP) test which will confirm any inflammatory process.
The cholestrol lowering from 235 mg/ dl to 219 mg/ dl is an improvement. If he is taking medications for lowering cholesterol then he must continue taking it. The cholesterol is borderline high and if he is not on medication then slight diet changes can bring it to normal range.
For the hiccups it is best to consult ENT specialist and know the cause and treatment. Doing a chest X ray might be required especially if he is a smoker.
Hope this answers your question. Please feel free to correct any oversight in my interpretation of your problems and discuss them in detail as per your requirements.
Hope your query is answered.
Do write back if you have any doubts.
Regards,
Dr.Vivek
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
Answered by
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