About Hemoglobin, Normal Hemoglobin Levels, Hemoglobin & Hemoglobinuria Test for Disease
Hemoglobin is a protein that hangs out in your red blood cells. It transports life sustaining oxygen from your lungs to the rest of you. And moves carbon dioxide, one of the end products of metabolism, back to your lungs for expulsion.
Hemoglobin is an iron rich molecule, made up of four heme groups around a single globin group. Upon the death of a red blood cell, hemoglobin is broken up into iron and bilirubin. The iron is recycled to your bone marrow and bilirubin is sent the bile for removal.
Testing your hemoglobin levels helps assess whether you suffer from various health conditions and diseases.
A hemoglobin levels test is performed on red blood cells or serum. As well as a test for its nonexistence in your urine.
Normal hemoglobin levels of red blood cells, in grams per deciliter, are:
- 13.8 to 17.2 gm/dL for men
- 12.1 to 15.1 gm/dL for women
You can be slightly over or under without a major health concern.
Some of the diseases and conditions for causing your red blood cell hemoglobin levels to be outside the normal range are:
- diabetes
- bleeding
- malnutrition
- over hydration
- cor pulmonale
- lead poisoning
- kidney disease
- giant cell arteritis
- polycythemia vera
- pulmonary fibrosis
- transfusion reaction
- too much erythropoietin
- low blood oxygen levels
- congenital heart disease
- hemolytic uremic syndrome
- iron, folate, vitamin B12, vitamin B6 deficiencies
- anemia ~ pernicious, iron deficiency, hemolytic, aplastic
A serum hemoglobin test measures the level of hemoglobin within your blood that’s outside red blood cells. Since most hemoglobin is inside red blood cells, normal levels in the serum is less than 3 mg/dL.
Elevated levels of your serum hemoglobin test may indicate:
- thalassemia
- G6PD deficiency
- hemolytic anemia
- sickle cell anemia
- hemoglobin C disease
Hemoglobinuria is hemoglobin in your urine. This is not normal.
Hemoglobinuria is caused by too high hemoglobin levels in your blood. It can result from various diseases and conditions, such as:
- burns
- malaria
- thalassemia
- tuberculosis
- kidney tumor
- crushing injury
- kidney infection
- sickle cell anemia
- transfusion reaction
- acute glomerulonephritis
- hemoglobin C & SC disease
- hemolytic uremic syndrome
These lists are not all inclusive. Other diseases and conditions can cause abnormal hemoglobin and hemoglobinuria test levels.
Making your own health determination based on hemoglobin levels is unwise. Leave the assessment of your hemoglobin levels to a health care professional.
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- Causes of Hematuria Blood in Your Urine for Blood Urination
- Deficiency Causes for Anemia and Dietary Food Sources for Deficiency Treatment
- Hemochromatosis, Iron Absorption Overload Symptoms, Iron Chelation, Phlebotomy Therapy
