Red blood cell counts and indices in the elderly German population

Data on peripheral blood cell values in older subjects are rare. While hemoglobin (Hb) values are supposed to change with rising age, little is known about reference values for other erythrocytic blood cell counts. This cross-sectional study was initiated to analyze hematologic laboratory parameters among subjects aged ≥60 years.This was a retrospective cross-sectional study of outpatient laboratory data between January 1st and December 31st, 2015 originating from a German countrywide laboratory group; inclusion criteria: age ≥60 years, normal C-reactive protein (CRP), transferrin saturation, reticulocytes, lactate dehydrogenase, haptoglobin and soluble transferrin receptor; exclusion criteria: glomerular filtration rate (GFR)90 years (16); median values for male/female subjects were: Hb 15.2/14.0 g/dL, RBC 5.0/4.6/μL, mean cellular volume (MCV) 89/89/fl, mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MCH) 31/30 pg/RBC, mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration (MCHC) 34/34 g/dL, hematocrit (hct) 44/41%. Statistical evaluation revealed a slight but significant decrease in values over age decades for all parameters except for MCH. However, all values remained within the recommended German Society of Hematology and Oncology (DGHO) reference ranges. Hb values remained above the recommended World Health Organization (WHO) cut-offs for definition of anemia.The results confirm the WHO reference values and are in accordance with the recommended DGHO reference values and previous results of other study cohorts outside Germany. There seems to be no need for establishing age-specific RBC or erythrocytic reference ranges for subjects >60 years.