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Previous Volume 353:498-507 August 4, 2005 Number 5 Next

	Since this article has no abstract, we have provided an extract of the first 100 words of the full text and any section headings.

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An examination of the blood smear (or film) may be requested by physicians or initiated by laboratory staff. With the development of sophisticated automated blood-cell analyzers, the proportion of blood-count samples that require a blood smear has steadily diminished and in many clinical settings is now 10 to 15 percent or less. Nevertheless, the blood smear remains a crucial diagnostic aid. The proportion of requests for a complete blood count that generate a blood smear is determined by local policies and sometimes by financial and regulatory as well as medical considerations. For maximal information to be derived from a blood . . . [Full Text of this Article]

When Physicians Should Request a Blood Smear

Anemia

Hemolytic Anemia

Macrocytic Anemia

Microcytic Anemia

Hemoglobinopathy and Thalassemia

Thrombocytopenia and Thrombocytosis

Leukemia, Lymphoma, or Bone Marrow Failure

Probable Factitious Results

Serendipity

The Blood Smear as Part of the Medical Record

The Future

Conclusions

Source Information

From the Department of Haematology, St. Mary's Hospital, London. Send reprint requests to Dr. Bain at St. Mary's Hospital, Praed St., London W2 1NY, United Kingdom, or at b.bain@imperial.ac.uk.

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Related Letters:

Diagnosis from the Blood Smear
Sill H., Neubauer M., Lawrence C.
Extract | Full Text | PDF  
N Engl J Med 2005; 353:1862, Oct 27, 2005. Correspondence

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• Aslinia, F., Mazza, J. J., Yale, S. H. (2006). Megaloblastic anemia and other causes of macrocytosis.. Clin Med Res 4: 236-241 [Full Text]  
• Sill, H., Neubauer, M., Lawrence, C. (2005). Diagnosis from the blood smear.. NEJM 353: 1862-1862 [Full Text]