Did my hematocrit/hemaglobin go down? Help needed

[xqfq]

I've been trying to see if I can reduce my hematocrit / hemoglobin without a blood donation, so I wanted to see if my 'experiment' had succeeded at all.

Pre-TRT, my hematocrit was 45.2, hemoglobin 15.3.

On my ~6 month TRT lab check, my hematocrit was 50.7 and hemoglobin 17.2. In labs I had drawn previously on my own in the past, my hematocrit had been around 47.1 and hemoglobin 16.3.

I've been experimenting with daily injections, lots of cardio, staying hydrated, and naringin daily for the past 5-6 weeks. I went to go get a CBC done yesterday to see where I was at and my results were:

Hematocrit: 48.1
Hemoglobin: 16.9

(Complete CBC attached)

So obviously these numbers are lower than before. But here's my Q:

I had three small vials of blood drawn for some tests at Labcorp on the same day (whatever the usual size is they use - 3 of those), then went across the street to Quest to have my CBC taken. It was over 30 minutes until I had my CBC done.

Could that 30 minutes + the 3 vials being drawn have falsely lowered my results here? Or would it not be meaningful because it's such a small amount of blood / not enough time had passed?

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Also, I'm confused about which of the two numbers (hematocrit, hemoglobin) to put more faith in. My hemoglobin times 3 is 50.7, but my hematocrit is 48.1. Not sure which I should "trust".

 

[TorontoTRT]

Hemoglobin is more accurate. Hematocrit is just a calculation and not a real test. And the hematocrit is not calculated by hemoglobin x 3. It's RBC x MCV.

 

[Vince Carter]

A couple of points swing can be as simple as hydration from test to test.

The 3x HGB is a fair approximation if you treat it as a very loose approximation, hard to say which one you trust but as I say a couple points of swing isn't going to change anything profound.

 

[Vince]

Your HCT is good! No reason to be concerned.

 

[Cataceous]

Dr. Saya: A hematocrit level can be "falsely" elevated due to relative dehydration as well (causes hemoconcentration). The hemoglobin level is needed to "calibrate". Hemoglobin should be ~1/3 of HCT. If hemoglobin is 1/3 or higher of HCT, then indeed the HCT is elevated. If hemoglobin is <1/3 of HCT then it is likely that low fluid status is skewing the results and should be rechecked when well hydrated.

 

[AndrogenHacker]

Hemoglobin can drop significantly related to hydration.

I'm an RN in an ICU and I see it everyday. Someone might have a Hemoglobin of 10, get like 3 liters normal saline, and recheck labs show hemoglobin of 8 something.

We call this a dilutional drop in hemoglobin.

Your drop from 17.2 to 16.9 is rather insignificant and is most likely just natural variation.

Also -

Have you read this article on peaktestosterone?

Ways To Lower Hemoglobin