International Journal of Clinical Research

Objective To investigate the clinical value of routine blood test parameters based on automated hematology analyzers in the differential diagnosis of thalassemia and iron deficiency anemia (IDA). Methods Fifty patients with confirmed thalassemia (thalassemia group), fifty patients with IDA (IDA group), and fifty healthy individuals (control group) were selected. All subjects underwent routine blood tests using the same automated hematology analyzer. Differences in erythrocyte parameters among the three groups and between the two anemia groups were compared, and the diagnostic ratios of key parameters were calculated. Results The red blood cell count (RBC) was higher in the thalassemia group than in the IDA group, while the mean corpuscular volume (MCV) and mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MCH) were lower in the thalassemia group. The red blood cell distribution width (RDW) was also lower in the thalassemia group compared to the IDA group. The combination of parameters (MCV, MCH, RDW) demonstrated superior diagnostic efficacy in differentiating the two types of anemia compared to any single parameter. Conclusion Multiple erythrocyte parameters provided by automated hematology analyzers, especially the combined analysis of MCV, MCH, and RDW, offer valuable reference for the rapid and preliminary differential diagnosis of thalassemia and IDA.

Automated hematology analyzer; Routine blood test; Thalassemia; Iron deficiency anemia; Differential diagnosis