Member Comments are provided by individuals and reflect their personal opinions only. Under NO circumstances should you act on any advice or opinion posted in this forum. ALWAYS check with your personal physician before taking any action regarding your health! MedHelp International and our partners, sponsors and affiliates have no obligation to monitor any comments posted on this site, or the content and/or accuracy of such exchanges. MedHelp International does not endorse the views of any user.
Dawn - Sed Rate Info.
by Moosiebjm, Apr 04, 2006 12:00AM
Sedimentation Rate
Test Overview
The sedimentation rate (sed rate) blood test measures how quickly red blood cells (erythrocytes) settle in a test tube in one hour.
When inflammation is present in the body, certain proteins cause red blood cells to stick together and fall more quickly than normal to the bottom of the tube. The more red cells that fall to the bottom of a special test tube in one hour, the higher the sed rate. These proteins are produced by the liver and the immune system under many abnormal conditions, such as an infection, an autoimmune disease, or cancer. There are many possible causes of an elevated sedimentation rate. For this reason, a sed rate is done with other tests to confirm a diagnosis. Once a diagnosis has been made, a sed rate can be done to help monitor the course of the disease or the effectiveness of treatment.
Why It Is Done
A sedimentation rate (sed rate) test is done to:
Determine whether a condition causing inflammation is present.
Monitor the response to treatment of some conditions, such as an infection or some autoimmune diseases.
How To Prepare
No special preparation is needed before having this test.
How It Is Done
The health professional drawing blood will:
Wrap an elastic band around your upper arm to stop the flow of blood. This makes the veins below the band larger so it is easier to put a needle into the vein.
Clean the needle site with alcohol.
Put the needle into the vein. More than one needle stick may be needed.
Attach a tube to the needle to fill it with blood.
Remove the band from your arm when enough blood is collected.
Apply a gauze pad or cotton ball over the needle site as the needle is removed.
Apply pressure to the site and then a bandage.
How It Feels
You may feel nothing at all from the needle puncture, or you may feel a brief sting or pinch as the needle goes through the skin. Some people feel a stinging pain while the needle is in the vein. However, many people do not feel any pain (or have only minor discomfort) once the needle is positioned in the vein. The amount of pain you feel depends on the skill of the person drawing the blood, the condition of your veins, and your sensitivity to pain.
Risks
Blood test
There is very little risk of complications from having blood drawn from a vein.
You may develop a small bruise at the puncture site. You can reduce the risk of bruising by keeping pressure on the site for several minutes after the needle is withdrawn.
Rarely, the vein may become inflamed after the blood sample is taken. This condition is called phlebitis and is usually treated with a warm compress applied several times daily.
Continued bleeding can be a problem for people with bleeding disorders. Aspirin, warfarin (Coumadin), and other blood-thinning medications can also make bleeding more likely. If you have bleeding or clotting problems, or if you take blood-thinning medication, tell your health professional before your blood is drawn.
Results
The sedimentation rate (sed rate) blood test measures how quickly red blood cells (erythrocytes) settle in a test tube.
Normal
Normal values may vary from lab to lab.
Sedimentation rate Males younger than 50:
0–15 millimeters per hour (mm/hr)
Males 50 and older:
0–20 mm/hr
Females younger than 50:
0–25 mm/hr
Females 50 and older:
0–30 mm/hr
High values
A high sedimentation rate (sed rate) may indicate inflammation caused by an infection. Infections may include:
Pneumonia.
Pelvic inflammatory disease.
Appendicitis.
Kidney, bone, joint, skin, or heart valve infections.
A high sed rate may also indicate some types of cancer (especially lymphoma or multiple myeloma), an autoimmune disease (such as systemic lupus erythematosus), certain inflammatory diseases (such as rheumatoid arthritis or polymyalgia rheumatica) or other medical conditions (such as chronic kidney failure, toxemia of pregnancy, or thyroid disease).
An extremely high sed rate (greater than 100 mm/hr) is often found in some severe infections (such as osteomyelitis or endocarditis), certain inflammatory diseases (such as temporal arteritis), and certain types of cancer (such as multiple myeloma or lymphoma).
Low values may be present in sickle cell anemia or polycythemia. A low value may also occur with an increased blood sugar level.
What Affects the Test
Factors that can interfere with your test and the accuracy of the results include:
Pregnancy.
Anemia.
If you are having your menstrual period.
Age. Sed rates normally increase with age.
Medications, such as corticosteroids, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatories (NSAIDs), heparin, birth control pills, procainamide, theophylline, vitamin A, aspirin, quinine, methotrexate, tamoxifen, some antibiotics, and some anticonvulsants.
What To Think About
The sedimentation rate (sed rate) cannot be used by itself to diagnose any specific disease. Results of a sed rate test should be evaluated along with your symptoms, other test results, and medical information.
Some diseases that cause inflammation do not increase the sed rate, so a normal sed rate does not always rule out a disease. However, certain conditions, such as temporal arteritis, almost always cause an elevated sed rate.
Some health professionals are using the C-reactive protein (CRP) blood test to help diagnose certain inflammatory conditions. For more information, see the medical test C-Reactive Protein. CRP may be elevated when a severe infection or inflammatory condition is changing rapidly.
Test Overview
The sedimentation rate (sed rate) blood test measures how quickly red blood cells (erythrocytes) settle in a test tube in one hour.
When inflammation is present in the body, certain proteins cause red blood cells to stick together and fall more quickly than normal to the bottom of the tube. The more red cells that fall to the bottom of a special test tube in one hour, the higher the sed rate. These proteins are produced by the liver and the immune system under many abnormal conditions, such as an infection, an autoimmune disease, or cancer. There are many possible causes of an elevated sedimentation rate. For this reason, a sed rate is done with other tests to confirm a diagnosis. Once a diagnosis has been made, a sed rate can be done to help monitor the course of the disease or the effectiveness of treatment.
Why It Is Done
A sedimentation rate (sed rate) test is done to:
Determine whether a condition causing inflammation is present.
Monitor the response to treatment of some conditions, such as an infection or some autoimmune diseases.
How To Prepare
No special preparation is needed before having this test.
How It Is Done
The health professional drawing blood will:
Wrap an elastic band around your upper arm to stop the flow of blood. This makes the veins below the band larger so it is easier to put a needle into the vein.
Clean the needle site with alcohol.
Put the needle into the vein. More than one needle stick may be needed.
Attach a tube to the needle to fill it with blood.
Remove the band from your arm when enough blood is collected.
Apply a gauze pad or cotton ball over the needle site as the needle is removed.
Apply pressure to the site and then a bandage.
How It Feels
You may feel nothing at all from the needle puncture, or you may feel a brief sting or pinch as the needle goes through the skin. Some people feel a stinging pain while the needle is in the vein. However, many people do not feel any pain (or have only minor discomfort) once the needle is positioned in the vein. The amount of pain you feel depends on the skill of the person drawing the blood, the condition of your veins, and your sensitivity to pain.
Risks
Blood test
There is very little risk of complications from having blood drawn from a vein.
You may develop a small bruise at the puncture site. You can reduce the risk of bruising by keeping pressure on the site for several minutes after the needle is withdrawn.
Rarely, the vein may become inflamed after the blood sample is taken. This condition is called phlebitis and is usually treated with a warm compress applied several times daily.
Continued bleeding can be a problem for people with bleeding disorders. Aspirin, warfarin (Coumadin), and other blood-thinning medications can also make bleeding more likely. If you have bleeding or clotting problems, or if you take blood-thinning medication, tell your health professional before your blood is drawn.
Results
The sedimentation rate (sed rate) blood test measures how quickly red blood cells (erythrocytes) settle in a test tube.
Normal
Normal values may vary from lab to lab.
Sedimentation rate Males younger than 50:
0–15 millimeters per hour (mm/hr)
Males 50 and older:
0–20 mm/hr
Females younger than 50:
0–25 mm/hr
Females 50 and older:
0–30 mm/hr
High values
A high sedimentation rate (sed rate) may indicate inflammation caused by an infection. Infections may include:
Pneumonia.
Pelvic inflammatory disease.
Appendicitis.
Kidney, bone, joint, skin, or heart valve infections.
A high sed rate may also indicate some types of cancer (especially lymphoma or multiple myeloma), an autoimmune disease (such as systemic lupus erythematosus), certain inflammatory diseases (such as rheumatoid arthritis or polymyalgia rheumatica) or other medical conditions (such as chronic kidney failure, toxemia of pregnancy, or thyroid disease).
An extremely high sed rate (greater than 100 mm/hr) is often found in some severe infections (such as osteomyelitis or endocarditis), certain inflammatory diseases (such as temporal arteritis), and certain types of cancer (such as multiple myeloma or lymphoma).
Low values may be present in sickle cell anemia or polycythemia. A low value may also occur with an increased blood sugar level.
What Affects the Test
Factors that can interfere with your test and the accuracy of the results include:
Pregnancy.
Anemia.
If you are having your menstrual period.
Age. Sed rates normally increase with age.
Medications, such as corticosteroids, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatories (NSAIDs), heparin, birth control pills, procainamide, theophylline, vitamin A, aspirin, quinine, methotrexate, tamoxifen, some antibiotics, and some anticonvulsants.
What To Think About
The sedimentation rate (sed rate) cannot be used by itself to diagnose any specific disease. Results of a sed rate test should be evaluated along with your symptoms, other test results, and medical information.
Some diseases that cause inflammation do not increase the sed rate, so a normal sed rate does not always rule out a disease. However, certain conditions, such as temporal arteritis, almost always cause an elevated sed rate.
Some health professionals are using the C-reactive protein (CRP) blood test to help diagnose certain inflammatory conditions. For more information, see the medical test C-Reactive Protein. CRP may be elevated when a severe infection or inflammatory condition is changing rapidly.
Related Communities
Recent Videos
Related Expert Forums
Recent Activity
Most Popular Trackers
RSS
Expert Activity
Community Members
Popular Groups
I am a 30 year old female with a sed rate of 24? I just had a visist with a rhematologist for ankle swelling and leg pain. She ordered a whole lot of blood test and everything came back ok except for the abnormal sed rate. What could this mean?