Blood test in a child: decoding - can you make it yourself?

In the maternity hospital the first blood test is taken from the child. The decipherment is carried out by a neonatologist, and if there are any deviations from the norm in the results, this is reported to the mother at the discharge from the maternity hospital, and all the data are transferred to the district pediatrician. Blood from a finger and from a vein to the kid now it is necessary to hand over often enough during all life: during illnesses, after convalescence, at carrying out prophylactic medical examination, before operations or for the purpose of prophylaxis. In the first year of life, a common blood test for crumbs will be taken monthly, paying special attention to the level of leukocytes and hemoglobin.

Often the parents receive a leaf with the result, which showed a blood test in the child. Deciphering it is not difficult, if you know the limits of the norm for each parameter. However, before proceeding to consider this topic, I would like to warn the reader - to make final conclusions, diagnose and prescribe any treatment should only be a doctor! Even if the transcript of the child's biochemical blood test , which you conducted on your own, did not show any deviations, be sure to give it to the doctor - he can see something that has escaped your attention, but it will be important to diagnose any disease.

What are the blood tests?

1. General - most often appointed. It can be used to judge inflammatory processes, the presence of worms, anemia, disorders in the endocrine system and many others, especially infectious diseases.
2. Biochemical blood test in a child. Deciphering it more detailed, by results of this research it is possible to judge a condition of internal organs.

If necessary, the doctor can also prescribe other types of blood tests: allergens, hormones, etc. If necessary, newborns are examined for genetic diseases.

There is one more

In the morning and on an empty stomach it is recommended to take a clinical analysis of the blood in a child. The interpretation of samples taken from one child at different times of the day is significantly different - after eating, the concentration of leukocytes increases, after sleeping, the erythrocytes.

If on the form that you are issued after you have passed the clinical analysis of the child's blood, the transcript is already there (that is, the range of the norm is next to the received indicator), be careful. Many hospitals still print the results of research on children on "adult" forms. In addition, many indicators can be evaluated only in comparison with other parameters, and only a specialist can do it. There are several reasons for this:

1. Only a doctor will be able to assess the picture as a whole, taking into account the various nuances that could affect the result: taking antibiotics, other drugs, post-infection and post-operative condition.
2. Only an expert can prescribe the correct treatment for a cold, having calculated by the analysis the cause of the disease - a bacterium or a virus.
3. The doctor can tell whether the increase in lymphocytes is due to old ARVI or is a new infection.

Therefore, we strongly recommend that you do not use the numerous tables found on the Internet, but consult a doctor who will make the right conclusions.