Are red blood cell indexes international?

Averages of patient red blood cell indexes have substantial application in hematology quality control. Little is known about the presence or the extent of geographic differences in these mean index values. If the average population indexes were found to be regionally and internationally similar, then starting quality control programs would be greatly simplified. Uniform indexes would also prove highly useful as independent monitors of national and international quality control trials. We analyzed the indexes of the patient populations attending university hospitals in Wales, California, and Japan by techniques that were independent of analyzer calibration. No significant differences were found in the mean red blood cell indexes of these three patient populations. The mean red blood cell volume, mean red blood cell hemoglobin, and mean red blood cell hemoglobin concentration rounded to the nearest 0.5 were, respectively, 89.5 fL, 30.5 pg, and 34.0 dL.