My doc sent me for some blood and the results have shown the below
Your patient’s blood tests have shown evidence of polycythaemia with elevated haemoglobin of 186 grams/l and elevated haematocrit of 0.54.
I would certainly recommend that he is referred to a haematologist regarding these results.
The symptoms of polycythaemia are
headaches
blurred vision
a ruddy complexion, due to the high number of red blood cells
chest pain
high blood pressure
pain in the calf muscles when walking
dizziness
tinnitus (ringing in the ears)
periods of confusion
Wow dude … haven’t heard of this. It may be nothing but get it checked out. I thought an increased hematocrit would mean you could run up Mount Everest without gasping for air not wind up feeling lousy!
These levels are tested in most standard blood tests so the likelihood is that most of us, if we’ve had a blood test at the GPs lately, will have had this test.
Weird. Haven’t heard of this either. My H and H levels have been elevated the last couple of years as well…
Note this passage from a leukemia and lymphoma newsletter that discusses the primary treatment for polycythemia:
Phlebotomy is the removal of blood from a vein. It is the
usual starting point of treatment for most patients. A
volume of blood is drawn at regular intervals and the
hematocrit concentration is brought down to normal
values within a period of weeks to months. The procedure
is identical to that used for donating blood to a blood bank. The immediate effect of phlebotomy is to reduce the
hematocrit concentration, which usually results in the
improvement of certain symptoms such as headaches,
ringing in the ears and dizziness. Eventually, phlebotomy
results in iron deficiency.
Phlebotomy may be the only form of treatment required for
many patients, sometimes for many years. Acceptable
disease control may be achieved with withdrawal of a
volume of blood every few months.