From Wintrobe to the XXI century. A Story of Inspiration and Effort

In 2014 we are celebrating the 80th anniversary of the Maxwell Myer Wintrobe´s pioneer works, one of the most important contributions in Clinical Laboratory and Medicine. Red cell indices continue to provide an essential support to the diagnosis and classification of anemia. The erythrocyte indices mean cell volume, mean cell hemoglobin concentration, mean cell hemoglobin are called the Wintrobe indices. Hematology automation has progressed steadily since Wallace Coulter first applied electrical impedance technology to counting red cells and white cells. Technological advances being incorporated into hematology analyzers since then are now allowing the access to more cellular information than was ever available before through a “simple routine CBC”. Current research is beginning to demonstrate that this information also has great potential to identify cellular changes that typically occur in several important medical conditions?bringing us all one step closer to using hematology analyzers as more than simple cell counters, but instead as powerful tools for the management of any medical condition that impacts the biology of blood cells. There are increasing amounts of data provided, which require specialist knowledge to interpret as well as understand the limitations inthe measurement of the parameter. Both laboratory scientists and clinicians need to keep up to date with new parameters and methods in hematology, implying a stronger collaboration between them to improve clinical decision making.