Other names: Mean RBC Volume, MEAN CORP. VOLUME
Optimal Result:
79 - 97 fl.
Mean corpuscular volume (MCV) is the average volume (one can also say average size) of red cells in a specimen. MCV is elevated or decreased in accordance with average red cell size; ie, low MCV indicates microcytic (small average RBC size), normal MCV indicates normocytic (normal average RBC size), and high MCV indicates macrocytic (large average RBC size).
Mean corpuscular volume (MCV) is a value calculated during a routine blood test called a complete blood count (CBC). An MCV is routinely performed by an automated machine on all CBCs. It’s included in the portion of the CBC that provides information on your red blood cells in particular, called the RBC (red blood cell) indices.
There are three main types of corpuscles (blood cells) in your blood: red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets.
An MCV blood test measures the average size of your red blood cells, also known as erythrocytes. Red blood cells move oxygen from your lungs to every cell in your body. Your cells need oxygen to grow, reproduce, and stay healthy.
If your red blood cells are too small or too large, it could be a sign of a blood disorder such as anemia (=a condition in which the body does not have enough healthy red blood cells), a vitamin deficiency, or other medical condition.
MCV is usually not interpreted as an isolated measurement. Rather, it is compared to the results of your other RBC indices and CBC values, like hemoglobin and hematocrit. Your doctor will also consider any symptoms or changes in your health when interpreting these test results.
MCV, along with mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MCH), and mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration (MCHC), is a part of RBC indices (erythrocyte indices), which are measurements and/or calculations for determining the size, content, and hemoglobin concentration.
More recently, red cell distribution width (RDW) has also been included as a part of RBC indices. The indices are useful in the morphologic characterization of anemia. Among these parameters, MCV is the most useful value used to classify the type of anemia based on red cell morphology.
Your red blood cells carry oxygen throughout your body. This oxygen, in turn, powers your cells. The characteristics of your red blood cells -- including size -- provide information about how successfully they can transport oxygen.
An MCV blood test is helpful because having a large number of atypically large or atypically small red blood cells can indicate certain conditions. It is less helpful if you have a wide variety of red blood cell sizes in a blood sample. In that case, even if there’s an abnormality, the numbers may average out as normal.
A typical adult MCV level is 80–100 femtoliters (fl).
- However, typical ranges vary between age groups and sexes.
- MCV results may differ among labs, so people should not worry if their reading is slightly above or below these ranges.
- If you have anemia or other health conditions you can have normal or abnormal MCV results. It is also possible for healthy people to have a normal or abnormal MCV result.
- Low MCV means that RBC are smaller than normal and may indicate microcytic anemia. This condition may be caused by iron deficiency, lead poisoning, or thalassemia, a genetic condition that causes your body to have less hemoglobin than normal.
- Normal MCV may indicate normocytic anemia. This can occur when an individual experiences symptoms of anemia due to sudden blood loss, kidney failure, or aplastic anemia, a rare disorder where the body does not produce enough RBC.
- High MCV means that the RBC are too large and indicates macrocytic anemia. This condition can be caused by several factors including low folate or vitamin B12 levels or chemotherapy.
- Iron deficiency anemia
- Anemia of chronic disease
- Thalassemia
- Sideroblastic anemia
- Folate deficiency anemia
- Vitamin B12 deficiency anemia
- Liver disease
- Hemolytic anemias
- Hypothyroidism
- Excessive alcohol intake
- Aplastic anemia
- Myelodysplastic syndrome
- Anemia of chronic disease
- Acute blood loss
- Hemolytic anemia, such as autoimmune hemolytic anemia, hereditary spherocytosis, or nonspherocytic congenital hemolytic anemia (G6PD deficiency, other)
- Anemia of renal disease
- Aplastic anemia
Additional notes: when considering the causes of anemia, the guidelines above are helpful but have limitations. For example, hemolytic anemia and aplastic anemia can manifest as normochromic and normocytic anemia or macrocytic anemia; anemia of chronic disease can be normochromic and normocytic anemia or microcytic anemia; sideroblastic anemia can be microcytic anemia, macrocytic anemia, or normochromic and normocytic anemia (due to the presence of dimorphic population of microcytes and macrocytes).
In addition, once the causes of anemia are considered, correlation with clinical findings, including history and physical examination, is important, as is, when necessary, performing more definitive tests to arrive with a definitive diagnosis.
American Society of Hematology [Internet]. Washington D.C.: American Society of Hematology; c2022. Anemia https://www.hematology.org/education/patients/anemia
Hinkle J, Cheever K. Brunner & Suddarth's Handbook of Laboratory and Diagnostic Tests. 2nd Ed, Kindle. Philadelphia: Wolters Kluwer Health, Lippincott Williams & Wilkins; c2014. Red Cell Indices; 451 p.
Maner BS, Moosavi L. Mean Corpuscular Volume. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK545275/
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute [Internet]. Bethesda (MD): U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; How Are Thalessemias Diagnosed? https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/health-topics/topics/thalassemia/diagnosis
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute [Internet]. Bethesda (MD): U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; Iron Deficiency Anemia https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health-topics/iron-deficiency-anemia
Testing.com [Internet]. Seattle (WA): OneCare Media; c2022. Anemia https://www.testing.com/anemia-testing/
Testing.com [Internet]. Seattle (WA): OneCare Media; c2022. Complete Blood Count (CBC) https://labtestsonline.org/understanding/analytes/cbc/tab/test
Testing.com [Internet]. Seattle (WA): OneCare Media; c2022. MCV Test; Available from: https://www.testing.com/tests/mcv-test/
University of Rochester Medical Center [Internet]. Rochester (NY): University of Rochester Medical Center; c2022. Health Encyclopedia: Complete Blood Count with Differential https://www.urmc.rochester.edu/encyclopedia/content.aspx?contenttypeid=167&contentid=complete_blood_count_w_differential
Yang, J., Yan, B., Yang, L. et al. Macrocytic anemia is associated with the severity of liver impairment in patients with hepatitis B virus-related decompensated cirrhosis: a retrospective cross-sectional study. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12876-018-0893-9
MedlinePlus: National Library of Medicine. Red Blood Cell (RBC) Indices. https://medlineplus.gov/lab-tests/red-blood-cell-rbc-indices/
Merritt BY, Curry CV. Mean Corpuscular Hemoglobin (MCH) and Mean Corpuscular Hemoglobin Concentration (MCHC) In: Wheeler TM, ed. https://emedicine.medscape.com/article/2054497-overview
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. Blood Tests. https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health-topics/blood-tests
Braunstein EM. Evaluation of Anemia. Merck Manual Professional Edition https://www.merckmanuals.com/professional/hematology-and-oncology/approach-to-the-patient-with-anemia/evaluation-of-anemia
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Blood and Urine Collection. https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nhanes/nhanes_09_10/labcomp_f.pdf
George TI. Automated Hematology Instrumentation. In: Uhl L, ed. UpToDate. https://www.uptodate.com/contents/automated-hematology-instrumentation
A high mean corpuscular volume (MCV) indicates that red blood cells are larger than normal, a condition known as macrocytic anemia. This type of anemia is often linked to vitamin deficiencies, underlying medical conditions, or lifestyle factors.
One subtype, megaloblastic anemia, commonly arises from deficiencies in vitamin B12 (cobalamin) and folate (vitamin B9). Both vitamins are essential for DNA synthesis, and their deficiency disrupts normal red blood cell production, leading to the formation of larger, immature cells.
High MCV levels can occur due to various conditions, with prevalence increasing with age. About 30% of older adults exhibit elevated MCV without an identifiable cause. Here are the most common causes:
Severely elevated MCV levels—above 125 fL—are most commonly linked to:
These cases often warrant thorough evaluation to identify and address underlying health issues.
The treatment for elevated MCV depends on the underlying cause:
Reversible Causes:
Chronic or Incurable Conditions:
If you have a high MCV, consult your healthcare provider for a comprehensive evaluation to determine the cause and appropriate treatment.
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A low mean corpuscular volume (MCV), which measures the average size of red blood cells, is often associated with microcytic anemia. Here are the primary conditions linked to low MCV levels:
Severely low MCV levels (below 70 fL) typically indicate iron deficiency anemia or thalassemia. However, these conditions don’t always follow predictable patterns. For instance, iron deficiency anemia may occasionally present with a normal MCV.
Microcytic anemia occurs when red blood cells are smaller than average. The leading cause is iron deficiency, which often stems from underlying conditions or lifestyle factors. Here are the most common causes of iron deficiency:
Blood Loss
Inadequate Dietary Iron
Reduced Iron Absorption
Increased Iron Demand
This information is intended to help you understand potential causes and guide conversations with your healthcare provider.
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Healthmatters is a personal health dashboard that helps you organize and understand your lab results. It collects and displays your medical test data from any lab in one secure, easy-to-use platform.
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If you are still determining whether Healthmatters support your lab results, the rule is that if you can test it, you can upload it to Healthmatters.
While we work with many popular labs, we welcome reports from lots of other places too.
It's as simple as this: if you can get a test done, you can upload it to Healthmatters and we can interpret results from any lab out there. If laboratories can analyze it, we can interpret it.
If you're on the hunt for a specific biomarker, contact us and we'll add it to our database. Anything from blood, urine, saliva, or stool can be uploaded, understood, and tracked with your Healthmatters account.
The Complete Plan ($15/month) is perfect for individuals who want ongoing access to their health data. It includes unlimited lab imports, visual tracking, custom ranges, result explanations, full account exports, and secure sharing — all with a simple monthly subscription. You can cancel anytime and restart your plan whenever you're ready — your data will still be there waiting for you. You can also upgrade to the Unlimited Plan at any time, with the cost prorated based on what you've already paid.
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Our data entry forms offer an easy, fast, and free way for you to input the reports yourself. Self-entry allows you to add an unlimited number of reports at no cost. We make the self-entry process user-friendly, providing dozens of templates that pre-populate the most popular laboratory panels and offering instant feedback on entered values.
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We support various file types, including PDFs, JPGs, or Excel. This service is particularly useful if you have many reports to upload or if you're too busy to handle the data entry yourself.
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Yes, you can. When entering values for the biomarker, you will see an "Edit Range" button. Click this button, and you'll have the option to enter a custom range.
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