Mean Corpuscular Volume

Abstract

Mean corpuscular volume (MCV) is a laboratory value that measures the average size and volume of a red blood cell. It has utility in helping determine the etiology of anemia — calculation of the value is by multiplying the percent hematocrit by ten divided by the erythrocyte count. Along with the hemoglobin and hematocrit, MCV can determine the classification of anemia as either microcytic anemia with MCV below the normal range, normocytic anemia with MCV within the normal range, macrocytic anemia with MCV above the normal range. Furthermore, it is useful for calculating the red blood cell distribution width (RDW).