to many red blood cells?

2.11.06

Too Many Red Blood Cells?

When you are told that you have too many red blood cells, it means that you are either suffering from a disease called Polycythaemia or a disease called Relative Erythrocytosis.

1.- Polycythaemia is a disease where there is an increase

- in the red blood cell count

- in hemoglobin

- in the total red blood cell volume

- in total blood volume

There are 2 types of Polycythaemia

- primary polycythaemia due to red cell precursors in the bone marrow.

- secondary polycythaemia not due to red cell precursors but due to

- lung disease,

- heart disease,

- increased altitude,

- defective haemoglobin,

- benign and malignant lesions.

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2.- Relative Erythrocytosis

- is a disease caused by fluid loss or decreased intake of fluid.

- there is no increased blood volume in it.

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Please contact me if you need any further information.

Too many red blood cells is referred to by doctors as polycythaemia and erythrocytosis.The main problem caused by polycythaemia is that the high number of red cells increases the blood's 'thickness' (viscosity). Blood flow to organs is reduced and, rarely, blood clots can form.The increase may be temporary and resolved once the cause is addressed, for example if a person loses weight, stops smoking or stops taking a diuretic.

Any increase in the volume of red blood cells should be monitored, because it may be the start of a true erythrocytosis.

It is known as polycythaemia and is an over production of red blood cells. If it's significantly raised your partner's doctor will refer him to a haematologist at the hospital. If it's only mildly raised, the doc will probably do another blood test in a couple of weeks time and keep an eye on things for a while too.

Please don't start worrying unnecessarily, it might be nothing. Even if he has polycythaemia, it can correct itself for no apparent reason, however sometimes patients with this condition need to have some blood taken from them - this is called venesection - and the process is similar to donating blood.

Immediately, it means that your blood is going to have trouble circulating because it's too full of particles. Longer term, it probably means you've got something wrong with your bone marrow and it's overproducing red cells. The doctor should have told him more -- like, how many "too many", and what does the doctor think is causing it? This condition is not life threatening right away, but it may be a symptom of some deeper p[roblem.

Too many red blood cells can make the blood thick and "sticky" causing problems with the circulation in the small blood vessels. Treatment is usually blood thinning medication or treatment of the cause if it can be found.

Polycythemia occurs as a result of pulmonary disease and some heart diseases. Also, a form is similar to leukemia in that the red cells multiply so much treatment by phlebotomy or P32 is required. Poylcythemia vera

.I think it is more of a problem if you have too many white blood cells, that is a sign of leukemia

it cannot mean cancer bacause cancer causes the cell with DNA in its nucleuse to be confused which causes the cell to multiply and that causes the cancer but red blood cells dont have nucleuse