Abstract

General medical and nutritional practice usually use hemoglobin value for the detection of anemia. Hematocrit test is rarely used, because the cutoff values for each segment of population still remain unclear. This study examined anemia prevalence rates using hemoglobin and hematocrit tests performed in underfive children, adult women and men. These data indicate that hemoglobin and hematocrit screening tests are highly correlated (r = 0.90) and are indeed comparable in detecting anemia in the same population. Using only hematocrit tests, the cutoff values for underfive children is 36 % or equal to 11 g/dl of hemoglobin, for adult women is 38 % or equal to 12 g/dl of hemoglobin, and for adult men is 42 % or equivalent to 13 g/dl of hemoglobin concentration. The hemoglobin and hematocrit tests are equally useful in detecting anemia, and that they can be used interchangeably for anemia screening.