What is the normal range of ESR?
Question posted by wafabaloch on 28 March 2012
Last updated on 14 July 2019 by Kyaw Zaw Aung
3 Answers
Male ESR 7 mm/hr
original normal values (men 3mm and women 7mm) made no allowance for a person's age and in 1967 it was confirmed that ESR values tend to rise with age and to be generally higher in women. Values are increased in states of anemia and in black populations.
Newborn: 0 to 2 mm/hr
Neonatal to puberty: 3 to 13 mm/hr
Age 20 55 90
Men 95% are less than 12 13 19
Women 95% are less than 18 21 23
Adults (Westergren method):
Men under 50 years old: less than 15 mm/hr.
Men over 50 years old: less than 20 mm/hr.
Women under 50 years old: less than 20 mm/hr.
Women over 50 years old: less than 30 mm/hr.
Children (Westergren method):
Newborn: 0 to 2 mm/hr.
Neonatal to puberty: 3 to 13 mm/hr.
Note: mm/hr. = millimeters per hour.
What abnormal results mean Return to top
Elevated values occur with:
Kidney disease
Pregnancy
Rheumatic fever
Rheumatoid arthritis
Severeanemia
Syphilis
Systemic lupus erythematosus
Thyroid disease
Tuberculosis
Other inflammatory conditions
Markedly elevated values occur with:
Giant cell arteritis
Multiple myeloma
Macroglobulinemia - primary
Hyperfibrinogenemia (elevated fibrinogen levels in the blood)
Necrotizing vasculitis
Polymyalgia rheumatica
Lower-than-normal levels occur with:
Congestive heart failure
Hyperviscosity
Hypofibrinogenemia (decreased fibrinogen levels)
Low plasma protein (due to liver or kidney disease)
Polycythemia
Sickle cell anemia
The normal range for ESR is 0-10mm. With increasing age after 50 years, the ESR rises and, in the elderly, many apparently normal subjects have increased readings. Thus the ESR is of limited value in detecting disease in elderly patients. Physiological increases in the ESR occur in pregnancy and the puerperium.
Take care, best wishes!
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