Hematology
Hematology (American English) or haematology (British English) is the branch of biology (physiology), pathology, clinical laboratory, internal medicine, and pediatrics that is concerned with the study of blood, the blood-forming organs, and blood diseases. Haematology includes the study of etiology, diagnosis, treatment, prognosis, and prevention of blood diseases. The lab work that goes into the study of blood is performed by a Medical Technologist.
Blood diseases affect the production of blood and its components, such as blood cells, hemoglobin, blood proteins, the mechanism of coagulation, etc.
Physicians specialized in hematology are known as haematologists. Their routine work mainly includes the care and treatment of patients with haematological diseases, although some may also work at the haematology laboratory viewing blood films and bone marrow slides under the microscope, interpreting various haematological test results. In some institutions, haematologists also manage the haematology laboratory. Physicians who work in haematology laboratories, and most commonly manage it, are pathologists specialized in the diagnosis of haematological diseases, referred to as haematopathologists. Haematologists and haematopathologists generally work in conjunction to formulate a diagnosis and deliver the most appropriate therapy if needed. Haematology is a distinct subspecialty of internal medicine, separate from but overlapping with the subspecialty of medical oncology. Haematologists may specialise further or have special interests, for example in:
(Hema- comes from the Greek word "`'aima" meaning "blood", -ology means study of.)
Common basic clinical hematology tests
In a clinical laboratory the hematology department performs numerous different tests on blood. The most commonly performed test is the complete blood count (CBC) also called full blood count (FBC), which includes; white blood cell count, platelet count, hemoglobin level and several parameters of red blood cells. Coagulation is a sub-speciality of hematology; basic general coagulation tests are the prothrombin time (PT) and partial thromboplastin time (PTT). Another common hematology test in the erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR).
In a blood bank the Coombs test is the most commonly performed test.
Hematology as basic medical science
Classification of hematologic diseases
Major categories of hematologic disease include:
Tests
Tests used in the investigation of hematological problems include:
- Full blood count
- Erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR)
- Blood film
- Bone marrow examination
- Coombs test
- Diascopy
- serum Ferritin level
- Vitamin B12 and Folate levels
- Prothrombin time
- Partial thromboplastin time
- Protein electrophoresis
- Hemoglobin electrophoresis
- D-dimer
- EOS
Treatments
Treatments include:
Alphabetical lists
- Hematologists
- Blood disorders
- Hematology topics
External links
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Pathology: hematology · myeloid hematologic disease (primarily D50-D77 · 280-289) |
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RBCs/
hemoglobinopathy |
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Polycythemia · Macrocytosis
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Nutritional
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Iron deficiency anemia (Plummer-Vinson syndrome) · Megaloblastic anemia ( Pernicious anemia) |
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Hemolytic
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Hereditary
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enzyme: G6PD Deficiency · Pyruvate kinase deficiency · Triosephosphate isomerase deficiency
hemoglobin: Thalassemia · Sickle-cell disease/trait
membrane: Hereditary spherocytosis · Hereditary elliptocytosis · Hereditary stomatocytosis
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Acquired
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Autoimmune (Warm, Cold) · MAHA · Myelophthisic
combinations: HUS · hemoglobinuria (PNH, PCH)
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Aplastic
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Acquired PRCA · Diamond-Blackfan anemia · Fanconi anemia · Sideroblastic anemia
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Blood tests
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MCV (Normocytic, Microcytic, Macrocytic) · MCHC (Normochromic, Hypochromic)
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Other
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Methemoglobinemia
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Coagulation/platelets/
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Hypercoagulability
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primary: Antithrombin III deficiency · Protein C deficiency/Activated protein C resistance/Protein S deficiency/Factor V Leiden · Hyperprothrombinemia
acquired: DIC (Congenital afibrinogenemia, Purpura fulminans) · autoimmune ( Antiphospholipid)
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Other
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Essential thrombocytosis
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clotting factor: Hemophilia (A/VIII, B/IX, C/XI) • Von Willebrand disease • Hypoprothrombinemia/II · XIII
platelet function: Bernard-Soulier syndrome · Glanzmann's thrombasthenia · Hermansky-Pudlak syndrome · Gray platelet syndrome · May Hegglin anomaly · Pelger-Huet anomaly
Purpura: Henoch-Schönlein · TP · ITP (Evans syndrome) · TTP
Thrombocytopenia (Heparin-induced thrombocytopenia)
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Monocytes/
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Histiocytosis
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WHO-I (Langerhans cell histiocytosis)
WHO-II/non-Langerhans-cell (Juvenile xanthogranuloma, Hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis)
WHO-III/malignant (Acute monocytic leukemia, Malignant histiocytosis, Erdheim-Chester disease)
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Other
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-penia: Monocytopenia
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-cytosis: granulocytosis (Neutrophilia, Eosinophilia, Basophilia)
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See also hematological malignancy and immune disorders
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Transfusion medicine |
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Apheresis (Plasmapheresis, Plateletpheresis, Leukapheresis) - Blood transfusion - Coombs test - Cross-matching - Exchange transfusion - International Society of Blood Transfusion - Intraoperative blood salvage - ISBT 128 - Transfusion reactions |
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| Human blood group systems - Blood type |
ABO - Chido-Rodgers - Colton - Cromer - Diego - Dombrock - Duffy - Gerbich - GIL - Hh - Ii - Indian - JMH - Kell (Xk) - Kidd - Knops - LW - Lewis - Lutheran - MNS - OK - P - Raph - Rh - Scianna - T-Tn - Xg - Yt - Other
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