Hyperemia, or polycythemia, means an excess of red blood cells. Hyperemia can appear at any age, but the peak incidence is between the ages of 40 and 80. What are the causes and symptoms of hyperemia, and most importantly - what can the consequences be?

Anemia( polycythemia ) are a number of conditions that have various causes, but they all share a common feature of the body overproducing red blood cells, as well as other blood components. Hyperemia can appear at any age, but the peak incidence is between the ages of 40 and 80. Women get sick slightly more often than men. There are three types of hyperaemia (polycythemia) - true, secondary and pseudo.

Anemia (polycythemia): symptoms

The symptoms of hyperemiadepend on its severity. If the number of red blood cells is slightly above the norms established for a he althy person, there are no alarming symptoms. When the blood volume increases significantly, the person suffers from headaches, dizziness, tinnitus, visual disturbances, abnormal reddening of the skin on the face, hands, feet, ears, and itching of the skin that intensifies after a hot bath. Other symptoms of hyperemia may include high blood pressure, vein thrombosis, heart attack or stroke.

True hyperemia (polycythemia)

True hyperemia (polycythemia) is a disease whose essence is an uncontrolled and progressive increase in the number of red blood cells, but also of white blood cells. The causes of polycythemia are not known.

There are three types of hyperaemia (polycythemia) - real, secondary, and pseudo-blood

In many patients, the initial symptom of polycythemia is either venous or arterial thrombosis. Sometimes the disease manifests itself at first with visible ischemia of the fingers, bleeding from the nose or from the gastrointestinal tract. True hyperemia is not an aggressive disease, but it is worth knowing that a small percentage of patients can develop it into leukemia. Complications of polycythemia, i.e. the easy formation of blockages and clots in veins or arteries, are much more dangerous, which makes patients at risk of strokes and myocardial infarctions. In order to avoid such serious complications, patients are treated with blood bleeds - they havemake blood thinner by lowering the number of red blood cells.

Important

In a he althy person, the red blood cell count and hemoglobin concentration are 4-5 million / μl and 11.5-16.0 g / dl in women and 5-6 million / μl and 12.5-18.0 g / dl in men. Red blood cells are made in the marrow by a process called erythropoiesis for 7-10 days, and the average lifespan in peripheral blood is 100-120 days. After this time, they are transported to the spleen and destroyed. Some of the products of their transformation are reused, and some are removed from the body. The hormone which stimulates the bone marrow to produce red blood cells is erythropoietin. It is considered the so-called the survival factor and its concentration in the body remain constant as long as the oxygenation of the tissues is at the appropriate level. Erythopoietin levels, like red blood cell mass, vary from person to person, but this is not affected by age or gender.

Secondary hyperaemia (polycythemia)

This form of hyperaemia develops for many reasons, but most often in chronically ill people. Its direct cause is the increased secretion of erythropoietin by the glomerular apparatus of the kidneys, which is most often provoked by chronic diseases. It is favored by kidney diseases (cysts, hydronephrosis, narrowing of the renal artery, glomerulonephritis), sometimes a condition after kidney transplantation, and some cancers. The disease may also be related to the implantation of artificial heart valves. The factors contributing to secondary hyperemia include carbon monoxide poisoning, exposure to high mountains, lung and heart diseases (mainly congenital cyanotic heart defects), sleep apnea, and long-term use of anabolic steroids and corticosteroids. Treatment of secondary hyperaemia is to treat the underlying disease. Almost all patients are given antiplatelet drugs to protect against blood clots and emboli. The drug called the first choice are preparations containing acetylsalicylic acid. Controlling the underlying disease usually solves the problem of an excessive red blood cell count.

Pseudohemorrhagia (polycythemia)

Pseudo-hyperaemia is caused by a significant loss of fluid caused by overheating, diarrhea and vomiting, as well as taking diuretics. Another reason may be severe obesity, intestinal diseases or chronic alcoholism. In other words, pseudocyaninemia occurs when your body lacks water. Blood is low in plasma, so red blood cells "float" in a small amount of fluid. Then it is also said to concentrate the blood.

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