Common lab values.

1. 270
The Dentist’s Quick Guide to Medical Conditions, First Edition. Mea A. Weinberg, Stuart L. Segelnick, Joseph S. Insler,
with Samuel Kramer.
© 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Published 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Appendix D
Interpretation of common laboratory values
Therapeutic range “High” value “Low” value
Whole blood
Hematocrit
(HCT)
38–54% (men)
36–47% (women)
High-altitude areas,
chronic smoker, dehy-
dration (false positive),
polycythemia vera, eryth-
ropoietin (Epogen)
Anemia, blood loss,
nutritional deficiency (iron,
vitamin B12
, and folate),
chemotherapy, cancer
(bone marrow), kidney failure
Hemoglobin
(Hb)
14–18g/dl (men)
12–16g/dl (women)
12–14g/dl (children)
14.5–24.5g/dl
(newborns)
High-altitude areas,
dehydration (false
positive), chronic smoker,
polycythemia vera,
emphysema,
erythropoietin (Epogen)
Loss of blood (injury, surgery,
ulcers, and cancer); chemo-
therapy; iron, vitamin B12
, or
folate deficiency; thalassemia;
sickle cell anemia; bone
marrow complications
Complete blood count (CBC)
Erythrocytes
(RBCs)
4.5–6×104
(men) Dehydration, polycythemia
vera, kidney cancer,
kidney transplant, heart
failure, chronic obstruc-
tive pulmonary disease
(COPD), congenital heart
disease, carbon monoxide
poisoning, sleep apnea
Anemia; bone marrow com-
plications; bleeding; multiple
myeloma; copper, folate, and
vitamin B6
and B12
deficiency;
leukemia; pregnancy; RBC
destruction
4.3–5.5×104
(women)
Reticulocytes 0–1% of RBCs Kidney disease producing
erythropoietin, hemolytic
anemia, erythroblastosis
fetalis
Bone marrow failure; liver dis-
ease (cirrhosis); vitamin B12
,
iron, or folate deficiency; kidney
disease; radiation therapy
Leukocytes,
total
5,000–10,000 cells/
mm3
Bacterial infection,
smoking, inflammatory
diseases (e.g., rheumatoid
arthritis), leukemia, tissue
damage, some drugs
(e.g., albuterol, lithium,
and corticosteroids)
Some drugs (e.g., chemother-
apeutics, clozapine, antibiotics,
and diuretics), bone marrow
problems, autoimmune diseases
(e.g., systemic lupus erythema-
tosus), liver or spleen disease,
radiotherapy, viral infections

2. Interpretation of common laboratory values 271
Therapeutic range “High” value “Low” value
Myelocytes 0; 0% of leukocytes Eosinophils, neutrophils,
and basophils: chronic
myeloid leukemia
Juvenile
neutrophils
0–100; 0–1% of
leukocytes
Band
neutrophils
0–500; 0–5% of
leukocytes
Segmented
neutrophils
Lymphocytes
2500–6000; 40–60%
of leukocytes
Eosinophils 1000–4000; 20–40%
of leukocytes
Basophils
Monocytes 50–300; 0–5% of
leukocytes
0–100; 0–1% of
leukocytes
200–800; 4–8% of
leukocytes
Platelets 150,000–400,000
cells/mm3
Hemolytic anemia,
iron-deficiency anemia,
splenectomy, cancer, von
Willebrand disease
Chemotherapy/radiation, can-
cer of bone marrow
RBC Measurements
Mean cor-
puscular vol-
ume (MCV)
80–94µm3
Pernicious anemia,
alcoholism, vitamin B12
or folate deficiency
Iron-deficiency anemia, blood
loss, thalassemia, chronic
disease
Mean
corpuscular
hemoglobin
(MCH)
27–32pg Macrocytic anemia Chronic blood loss,
microcytic anemia
Mean
corpuscular
hemoglobin
concentration
33.4–35.5g/dl Sickle cell anemia Microcytic and
macrocytic anemias
Electrolytes
Metabolic acidosis (kidney
disease, liver failure, diarrhea)
Bicarbonate
(carbon diox-
ide) (total)
18–30mEq/l Metabolic alkalosis
Calcium
(total)
9–11mg/dl;
4.5–5.5mEq/l
Hyperparathyroidism
(tumor), sarcoidosis, mul-
tiple myeloma, excessive
vitamin D intake, Paget’s
disease
Hypothyroidism, osteomalacia
Chloride 98–106mEq/l Metabolic acidosis, renal
tubular acidosis
Addison’s disease, heart fail-
ure, syndrome of inappropriate
diuretic hormone secretion
(SIADH)
(continued)

3. 272 The dentist’s quick guide to medical conditions
Therapeutic range “High” value “Low” value
Magnesium 1.8–3.6mg/dl;
1.5–3.0mEq/l
Addison’s disease, chronic
renal failure, dehydration,
diabetic acidosis
Alcoholism, chronic diarrhea,
hypoparathyroidism, ulcerative
colitis, liver cirrhosis
Phosphorus 3–4.5mg/dl;
1.8–2.3mEq/l (adults)
Liver disease, renal fail-
ure, hypoparathyroidism
Hyperparathyroidism
4–6.5mg/dl; 2.3–
3.8mEq/l (children)
Potassium 3.5–5.5mEq/l Kidney failure, Addison’s
disease, angiotensin-
converting enzyme
inhibitors (ACEIs; anti-
hypertensive), diuretics,
drug abusers, type 1
diabetes
Eating disorders
(bulimia—vomiting), sweating,
chronic diarrhea
Sodium 135–147mEq/l Cushing’s syndrome,
hyperaldosteronism,
increased fluid loss
(vomiting, diarrhea),
excessive dietary salt,
NSAIDs, corticosteroids,
laxatives, lithium, oral
contraceptives
Heart failure, burns, vomiting,
dehydration, liver cirrhosis,
syndrome of inappropriate
diuretic hormone secretion
(SIADH), diuretics
Enzymes
Alkaline
phosphatase
50–160 U/l Paget’s disease, biliary
obstruction, osteoblastic
bone tumors,
hyperparathyroidism
Protein deficiency
Amylase 53–123 U/l Acute pancreatitis,
pancreatic cancer,
intestinal/bile duct
blockage, perforated ulcer
Toxemia of pregnancy
creatine
kinase (CK)
or creatine
phosphoki-
nase (CPK)
38–174 U/l (males); Bowel obstruction,
duodenal ulcer, pancreatic
cancer
Crohn’s disease, celiac
disease, cystic fibrosis
96–140 U/l (females)
Lipase 10–150 U/l Liver cirrhosis, hepatitis,
infectious mononucleosis,
acute myocardial
infarction, alcoholism
Normal results
ALT (SGPT) 0–30 U/l
AST (SGOT) 0–40 U/l Recent myocardial
infarction, liver disease,
hepatitis, skeletal muscle
trauma
Normal results

4. Interpretation of common laboratory values 273
Therapeutic range “High” value “Low” value
Others
Albumin 3.5–5.5g/dl Dehydration, high protein
diet
Liver disease, kidney disease
Bilirubin 0.1mg/dl Cirrhosis, hepatitis,
pancreatic cancer
No concerns
Total
cholesterol
(depends on
age)
<200mg/dl Hereditary, diet, risk of
heart disease
Normal results
Creatinine 0.5–1.4mg/dl Chronic kidney disease Normal results
Glucose,
fasting serum
65–99mg/dl Diabetes Normal results
Triglycerides 40–200mg/dl Risk of heart disease Normal results
Blood urea
nitrogen
(BUN)
6–20mg/dl Severe dehydration,
kidney disease, heart
failure, GI bleeding
Low protein diet,
malnutrition, over-hydration
Uric acid 2.0–4.0mg/dl Diabetes, alcoholism,
renal failure, lead
poisoning
Syndrome of inappropriate
diuretic hormone (SIADH),
Wilson’s disease, Fanconi
syndrome
Data from: http://www.fda.gov/downloads/ICECI/Inspections/IOM/UCM135835.pdf; http://www.
nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/
Note: The normal ranges in each laboratory depend on the local population, test methodology and
conditions of assay, units, and a variety of other circumstances. The ranges above are typical, but the
normal values established for each laboratory should be used for most purposes.