Haematological values in a healthy adult population in Yaoundé, Cameroon

Haematological values derived from local populations are useful in laboratories to improve diagnoses for local patients. In Cameroon, these data are not yet available. Moreover, there is great variation in baseline parameters pertaining to full blood cell count among medical laboratories.

This study aimed to determine values for the complete blood cell count of a healthy adult Cameroonian population for use in locally derived ranges in our medical laboratories.

A cross-sectional study was conducted among blood donors attending three blood banks in Yaoundé from November 2015 to September 2016. We expected to obtain at least 120 venous blood samples from both men and women. Tests were performed for (1) HIV, (2) complete blood cell count, (3) hepatitis B virus, (4) malaria, (5) syphilis, (6) C-reactive protein and (7) hepatitis C virus.

We enrolled 294 healthy participants (161 men, 133 women) aged 18 to 55 years. The median haemoglobin concentration was 135 g/L in men and 114 g/L in women (p < 0.001). The median reticulocyte count was 60 × 10⁹/L in men and 40 × 10⁹/L in women (p < 0.001). Significant variation by sex was observed for the platelet count. The median white blood cell count was 4.1 × 10⁹/L in men and 4.6 × 10⁹/L in women (p = 0.008).

This study provides locally derived ranges for complete blood cell and reticulocyte counts for a healthy adult population in Yaoundé, Cameroon. These results can be used pending larger studies.