Packed cell volume Haematocrit (PCV)
The share of your blood that is red cells rather than fluid.
Also printed asHematocrit · HCT · PCV · Ht
What it measures
The share of your blood volume that is red cells rather than plasma.
Moves with haemoglobin and with hydration; a high value thickens blood, a low one tracks anaemia.
Why it matters for how long you stay well
It carries much the same message as haemoglobin, so follow one of them consistently across your reports rather than reacting to both.
How it shows up in daily life
Arriving thirsty makes it look higher than it is, because there is less water diluting the cells.
High and low readings
When it reads high
Concentration from dehydration, or genuinely too many red cells.
When it reads low
Tracks a low haemoglobin.
What moves it
Daily life
- how much water you drink
- iron stores
- living at high altitude, which raises it
- smoking, which raises it
Medicines known to shift it
- iron supplements (raise it when iron was low)
- diuretics (can raise it)
Listed so a result can be read in context. It is not advice to start, stop or change any medicine; that decision belongs with your physician.
Read it with
Markers that move this one, or that this one moves. One number read alone can mislead.
- Haemoglobin, your oxygen carrierKnown mechanism
Haemoglobin moves with it
Packed cell volume is simply the space those same red cells take up. So it rises and falls with haemoglobin, at roughly three times the number.
Common questions
What does Haematocrit (PCV) measure?
The share of your blood volume that is red cells rather than plasma. Moves with haemoglobin and with hydration; a high value thickens blood, a low one tracks anaemia.
What does a high Packed cell volume result usually mean?
Concentration from dehydration, or genuinely too many red cells.
What does a low Packed cell volume result usually mean?
Tracks a low haemoglobin.
What is the usual reference range for Packed cell volume?
A broad adult reference band is 40–50 %. For women the band is 36–46 %. Labs differ, so read your result against the band printed on your own report.
Educational only, not a diagnosis. A single number means little without your history and the rest of your panel, so discuss your own results with your physician.
Typical adult reference band
- Men
- 40–50 %
- Women
- 36–46 %
Labs differ. The band printed on your own report is the one that applies to your result.
Reported in %
Ageing relevance
2/5
Relevant to the ageing of one organ, or to disease screening.
Worth knowing
It runs at roughly three times your haemoglobin, which is a quick way to check that the two results agree.
Have a report with this marker on it? Read it in context.
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