Health Info #1

The family has asked that some general information can be posted so that everyone can begin to understand some of the medical issues at hand. We'll start with the basics:

HOW THE BODY WORKS

Bone Marrow
Located in the center of the bones, is the place where
blood cells are made. Usually just the flat and long bones are resposible for
the production of blood cells. These blood cells (called stem cells) are
produced in the marrow and mature to become red blood cells, white
blood cells, and platelets. These blood cells are then released into the
blood where they perform the following functions.....
Red- carry oxygen from the lungs to body tissue
White- fight infections or provide defense against infections
Platelets- form clots which stop bleeding.

Blood Counts

Red Blood Cells
The red blood cells carry oxygen, so fi the number of red blood celss
is decreased (anemia), there might be shortness of breath, tiredness,
weakness and paleness. One way to measure the red blood cell count is the packed
cell volume or hematocrit (HCT). The usual value is 37%-47%, however a
haematocrit of 26% or greater would be acceptable for someone who had
previously had chemotheropy. IF the hematocrit falls too low, a
transfusion will be ordered.

White Blood Cells
WBC's fight infection or help provide defense against infections. A
normal WBC count is between 4 to 11 thousand. Neutrophils are one kind of
white blood cell. When we are referring to your ability to fight infection,
we are concerned with the number of netrophils taht you ahve. Other names for
neutrophils are "granulocytes" or "polys"
The Absolute neutrophil count (ANC) tells how many mature infection
fighting white blood cells you have. The percentage of the total WBC that is
made up of neutrophils i the ANC. This tells about the recoery of the bone
marrow and the ability to fight infection.

Platelets
Are blood cells that help form clots. If your platelet count gets too
low you may have some bleeding. Your doctor will examine each day to locate
any evidence of bleeding while the blood counts are low.
Althought a normal platelet count is 140-340 thousand, bleeding does
not usually occur until the platelet count gets much lower than this.