Internist Questions Internist

Particles in bloodstream ?

If a patient says to you, “I had blood-work, and the numbers were - 312 particles in the bloodstream when 14 particles are maximum. What does that mean?

Female | 62 years old

1 Answer

InternistInternist
Blood test particles assessments refer specifically to Lipoproteins that are circulating in your plasma. Lipoproteins carry cholesterol and fatty acids and triglycerides principally. These particles are essential for the plasma carriage of proteins, some vitamins, the various cholesterol compounds, triglycerides and phospholipid compounds. The composition of a lipoprotein particle changes as it circulates throughout the bloodstream because these particles will release some carried compounds and will pick up other compounds. The function is "carriage protein."

So, particle count is a concentration per milliliter of plasma. The higher the particle count, the more concerned one would become, as the count reflects cholesterol and triglyceride principally. The particle count thus is an indicator of cardiovascular disease risk