Read the smear
Blood Film - Image Library
Peripheral blood smears annotated for red cell, white cell and platelet morphology.
- Cell morphology
- Annotated
- Points to the cause
- Pattern-based
What's inside the Blood Film library
The blood film library reads a smear the way a haematologist does - red cells, then white cells, then platelets - turning morphology into a differential.
Iron-deficiency anaemia
Small (microcytic), pale (hypochromic) red cells with increased central pallor, often with pencil cells and variation in size and shape. This pattern points to iron studies, and contrasts with the oval macrocytes and hypersegmented neutrophils of B12 or folate deficiency.
Sickle cell disease
Sickle-shaped cells, target cells and features of hyposplenism such as Howell-Jolly bodies. In a crisis the clinical picture and the film together drive management; confirm with haemoglobin electrophoresis.
A repeatable blood-film reading sequence
Begin with film quality and the monolayer, then assess red-cell size, colour, shape and distribution before moving to white-cell number, maturity and morphology. Finish with a platelet estimate and a deliberate search for parasites or inclusions when the clinical question makes them relevant. Describe what is visible before naming a diagnosis, and connect the pattern to the full blood count and patient context. Image practice builds recognition, but a teaching image cannot replace examination of the complete slide or review by a qualified laboratory professional.
Work through the full Blood Film library in MedNext
Every image is annotated the same way, mapped to high-yield exam topics and linked to its chapter.
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