mentzer_index: Mentzer Index for Microcytic Anemia

In cliot: Clinical Indices and Outcomes Tools

Mentzer Index for Microcytic Anemia

Description

Calculates the Mentzer Index to help differentiate between iron deficiency anemia and beta-thalassemia trait in patients with microcytic anemia. The index is the ratio of Mean Corpuscular Volume (MCV) to Red Blood Cell count (RBC).

Usage

mentzer_index(mcv, rbc_count)

Arguments

mcv	Numeric. Mean Corpuscular Volume in fL.
rbc_count	Numeric. Red Blood Cell count in Millions/uL (x10^12/L).

Value

A list containing:

Mentzer_Index	The calculated index value.
Interpretation	Diagnostic suggestion (<13 favors Thalassemia, >13 favors Iron Deficiency).

References

Mentzer WC Jr. Differentiation of iron deficiency from thalassaemia trait. Lancet. 1973;1(7808):882. doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(73)91446-3

Examples

# Example 1: Thalassemia Trait Likely
# MCV 65, RBC 5.5
# Index = 65 / 5.5 = 11.8
mentzer_index(65, 5.5)

# Example 2: Iron Deficiency Likely
# MCV 70, RBC 3.5
# Index = 70 / 3.5 = 20
mentzer_index(70, 3.5)

cliot documentation built on Dec. 1, 2025, 1:06 a.m.