Abstract: Objective To examine the utility of the reticulocyte hemoglobin content (CHr) in screening for iron deficiency in women. Methods 506 female subjects in department of medical examination were selected, and all the subjects were divided into iron deficiency group (iron deficiency without anemia group and iron deficiency anemia group, 121 cases), and healthy controls group(394 cases). The levels of red blood cell counting(RBC), hemoglobin(HGB), hematocrit(HCT), red blood cell volume distribution width(RDW), serum ferritin (SF), serum iron(SI), and CHr were determined. Results The levels of CHr(27.2 ± 3.0) in the iron deficiency group were significant lower than that (30.6 ±1.3) in the control group, P<0.001. Receiver operator characteristic curve analysis demonstrated that the area under the curve of CHr was 0.814 and significantly greater than RBC and HGB and HCT and MCV and MCH and MCHC and RDW in the diagnosis of iron deficiency in women, P<0.05. Conclusions CHr could be used for screening for and early diagnosis of iron deficiency in women.

Key words: KeyWords: reticulocyte, iron deficiency, anemia