COMPLETE BLOOD COUNT; CBC

The Complete Blood Count — CBC — is the most frequently ordered blood test in medicine. From a single sample it measures your haemoglobin and red blood cells, your white blood cells (including the differential count of their types), and your platelets, along with calculated indices that describe the red cells' size and content.

Because it touches on anaemia, infection, inflammation, bleeding tendency and general health in one panel, the CBC is usually the first test a doctor orders when something feels wrong — and a standard part of preventive health checkups and pre-surgery workups.

When do doctors advise this test?

• Weakness, fatigue, pallor or suspected anaemia
• Fever or suspected infection — the white cell pattern helps judge its nature
• Routine preventive health checkups and pre-surgery screening
• Follow-up of known blood conditions or treatment monitoring, as advised
• Unexplained bruising, bleeding or frequent infections

Preparation & the sample

No fasting is needed for a CBC alone — the sample can be given at any time of day. If your CBC is booked together with fasting tests (like sugar or lipid profile), the fasting rules of those tests apply to the visit. Free home sample collection is available across Lucknow.

This information is educational and general. Your doctor's advice for your specific situation always comes first.