Comparison between a modified haemocytometric technique and electronic counters in goat blood cell counting

Area of Science:

• Veterinary Hematology
• Comparative Pathology
• Animal Science

Background:

• Accurate blood cell counts are vital for diagnosing animal diseases.
• Existing methods may not be optimal for all species, including goats.
• Goat red blood cells (erythrocytes) have a small volume, posing challenges for standard counting techniques.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine optimal dilutions for haemocytometer counting of goat red blood cells (RBC).
• To compare RBC and white blood cell (WBC) counts obtained by haemocytometry versus an electronic cell counter (Coulter counter).
• To assess the impact of counting methods on clinical hematological diagnoses and reference values in goats.

Main Methods:

• Haemocytometer counting of RBCs using goat blood dilutions (1:200 to 1:1,000) in 27 goats.
• Correlation analysis comparing haemocytometer and Coulter counter results for RBC and WBC counts in 551 goat blood samples.

Main Results:

• Optimal haemocytometer dilutions for RBC counting were identified as 1:400-1:500.
• Haemocytometer RBC counts were 5.63% higher than electronic counter results.
• Haemocytometer WBC counts were 2.79% lower than electronic counter results.

Conclusions:

• The method used for blood cell counting significantly influences clinical hematological diagnoses and reference values in domestic animals.
• Current cell counting methods may not be sufficiently accurate for small-volume cells like goat erythrocytes.
• Development of new cell counters specifically designed for small animal cell volumes is necessary for improved diagnostic accuracy.