Hemoglobin and MCV values in 4,074 healthy black children and adolescents.

Hemoglobin and mean corpuscular volume values appear to be lower among black than among white children. Blood hemoglobin concentration and red cell mean corpuscular volume were measured in 4,074 black boys and girls aged 1 through 20 years who lived near sea level. This is the largest hematologic survey of healthy American black children and adolescents to date. Children with sickle cell disease and elevated hemoglobin F were excluded from the study, but children with the traits for hemoglobin S, hemoglobin C, thalassemia, and iron deficiency were not. The 3rd and 97th percentile values reported here are close to the 95 percent confidence limits, and are adjusted for age and sex.