Can Asthma Cause High Hemoglobin Levels

What Causes High Hgb And Hct Levels

Polycythemia vera is one medical disease that can induce excessive hemoglobin levels COPD, emphysema, and pulmonary fibrosis are all examples of lung illnesses Cardiovascular illness, particularly congenital heart disease , may also be responsible for increased red cell counts.

Excessive red blood cell production is called polycythemia. The two main types are primary and secondary . Primary polycythemias include: myeloproliferative neoplasms such as essential thrombocythemia and polycythemia vera . These are problems with the bone marrow that make it produce too many new red blood cells. Other diseases that can lead to polycythemia include leukemia, lymphoma, and myelodysplastic syndrome . Secondary polycythemias result from other problems not related to the bone marrow. Examples include chronic kidney disease, cirrhosis, and cancer treatments such as chemotherapy and radiation therapy.

People with high red blood cell counts may experience dizziness, fatigue, headache, pain in their limbs, or trouble breathing. If you have polycythemia, your doctor will try to reduce your red blood cell count using medications or tests called phlebotomies. If these methods fail, alternative therapies may be considered.

When To Seek Immediate Medical Advice

Polycythaemia can cause blood clots. These put you at risk of life-threatening problems such as:

• pulmonary embolisms a blockage in the blood vessel that carries blood from the heart to the lungs
• deep vein thrombosis a blockage that forms in the blood vessels in your leg before moving elsewhere in your body

Seek medical help immediately if you or someone youre with shows signs of DVT or a pulmonary embolism. These include:

• pain, swelling, redness and tenderness in one of your legs
• a heavy ache in the affected area
• warm skin in the area of the clot
• feeling lightheaded or dizzy

Polycythaemia also increases your risk of heart attack and stroke. Seek emergency medical help if you think that you or someone youre with is having a heart attack or stroke.

Causes Of Elevated Hematocrit And Hemoglobin

When the hematocrit value is higher than the normal range, it is usually indicative of an elevated red blood cell count. Hematocrit values could be affected by the size, as well as the numbers of the red blood cells. High hemoglobin and hematocrit could be a sign of polycythemia vera. Here are some of the common contributing factors for high levels of hemoglobin, as well as hematocrit.

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Cramping And Tingling In Limbs

The large leg muscles require a lot of blood and oxygen to function. Oxygen deprivation causes them to work overtime and cause fatigue, weakness, severe cramps, and restless leg syndrome , which may contribute to insomnia.

Anemic patients may feel a crawling or itchy sensation in the feet and legs, which can worsen at night.

How Is High Hemoglobin Count Treated

Treatment for high hemoglobin count varies depending on the underlying cause. In some cases, your healthcare provider may recommend a phlebotomy. In a phlebotomy, a healthcare provider inserts a needle into one of your veins and removes extra red blood cells. You may need to have multiple phlebotomies until your hemoglobin levels are within a typical range.

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Lung Or Pulmonary Disease

Any impairment in the function of your lungs can produce excess red blood cells. If you are unable to inhale and absorb sufficient quantity of oxygen, the oxygen supply to your body will be inadequate. Your body will them make more red blood cells to compensate for the shortfall.12 Severe lung conditions such as scarred or thickened lung tissue can cause this problem.13

Can High Hemoglobin Cause Death

Low or high hemoglobin levels were linked to increased cardiovascular and all-cause death. Reaching and maintaining normal hemoglobin concentrations was associated with lower all-cause mortality. However not all studies have shown a similar link between higher hemoglobin levels and improved survival. Further research is needed to determine if there are any safe levels of hemoglobin when treating patients with anemia due to CKD.

The study also showed that people who are diagnosed with anemia due to chronic kidney disease are at increased risk of death compared to those who do not have the condition. Anemia is very common in patients with advanced stages of renal failure. It occurs as blood cells are destroyed by chemicals used to clean waste from your body during hemodialysis or peritoneal dialysis. Patients undergoing these treatments need to have their hemoglobin levels monitored by doctors to ensure that they do not become too anemic which could lead to problems with breathing, feeling faint when getting up from a sitting position, or bleeding from their eyes or ears.

High hemoglobin levels can be harmful because they may signal that you have excess red blood cells circulating in your body and this could put you at risk of getting injured more easily. Also, high hemoglobin levels may indicate that you are losing blood faster than it is being replaced which could be a sign of internal bleeding.

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What Causes Polycythemia In Babies

Some other reasons why babies could develop this problem of high hemoglobin or excess red blood cells are listed below.19:

• Being born at high altitudes or living at such altitudes causes babies to develop excess red blood cells as it does in adults who live in such locations.
• Being born post-term after the mother crosses the 42-week mark in her pregnancy can also cause elevated red blood cell counts.
• Having diabetic mothers can make babies susceptible.
• Down syndrome or chromosomal abnormalities specifically in trisomies 13, 18, and 21 may result in polycythemia.
• Experiencing intrauterine growth restriction or being small for gestational age can cause excess red blood cells to develop.
• Being the recipient of a twin-to-twin blood transfusion from ones identical twin may also result in polycythemia.

References

Who Can Help Treat My Anemia

Fortunately, anemia is treatable under proper medical supervision. If youre experiencing some of these symptoms and think that you might be anemic, the medical team at Texas Medical Institute can help.

If you have any questions about our clinic or would like to schedule an appointment, contact us today by calling 615-8633, or request an appointment now via our online form. We look forward to helping you enjoy ultimate health and wellness!

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Causes And Risk Factors

Several medical issues can cause high hemoglobin levels. Many conditions that lead to high hemoglobin are chronic diseases, so you and your doctor might already know that you have the underlying cause before it affects your hemoglobin.

Sometimes dehydration can make your hemoglobin level seem high when measured with a blood test, even when you dont have a high total amount of hemoglobin. Regaining normal hydration will usually correct your hemoglobin measurement if it is rechecked.

Lifestyle causes of elevated hemoglobin levels include:

• Smoking: High hemoglobin levels are very common in smokers.
• High altitude: When you are in a high elevation, the lower oxygen pressure in your environment makes your body require more hemoglobin to maintain your oxygen needs.
• Erythropoietin: This natural kidney hormone stimulates red blood cell production. Some people need to take this hormone to compensate for a medical condition. It is also misused in some situations that involve physical or athletic performance.

Medical conditions that cause high hemoglobin include:

• Chronic low oxygen level
• Liver or kidney cancer
• Polycythemia vera: A blood disorder in which the body makes too many red blood cells

These conditions can cause your body to make more red blood cells, and hemoglobin is a component of red blood cells.

What Is High Red Blood Cell Count

A high red blood cell count means the number of red blood cells in your bloodstream is higher than normal. Red blood cells are one of the major components of your blood, along with white blood cells and platelets. Red blood cells help carry oxygen throughout your body. But, when your red blood cell count is high, it could mean you have an underlying health condition.

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What Causes High Hemoglobin And Hematocrit Levels

A high hemoglobin count arises most typically when your body demands more oxygen-carrying capability, which is usually due to smoking. Because you live at a high elevation, your red blood cell production naturally rises to compensate for the decreased oxygen supply. Thus, your hemoglobin level will be higher than normal.

An elevated hematocrit level occurs when your blood cells are larger than normal thus, there are more of them per volume of blood. This problem may arise from excessive loss of blood through injury or surgery or from increased destruction of blood cells by cancer chemotherapy. Smoking also increases the number of red blood cells and can cause an elevated hematocrit level even in people who aren’t anemic.

People with kidney disease often have high hemoglobin levels because they require more red blood cells to filter waste out of their bodies. Additional blood cells are sometimes needed after major surgery or during illness when the immune system is weakened.

High hemoglobin levels can be harmful if they occur without symptoms. As hemoglobin carries oxygen to tissues throughout the body, too much of it can be dangerous if it leads to organ damage. The kidneys are particularly vulnerable to damage caused by excess hemoglobin because they need large amounts of this protein to perform their job of removing waste from the blood. People with very high hemoglobin levels may require dialysis or transplantation as a treatment option.

Lung Functions And No

Spirometry was performed using an automated spirometer according to American Thoracic Society guidelines with National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey predicted equations. Subjects withheld short-acting -agonist treatments for 4 hours, long-acting -agonist treatments for 12 hours, and other asthma medications for the appropriate length of time to avoid interference with the spirometry. FENO was completed using a NIOX Mino consistent with American Thoracic Society guidelines.

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Hemoglobin Could Be A Biomarker In Copd

An understanding of hemoglobin levels in patients with COPD could help guide disease management.

In patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease , anemia was associated with increased symptoms of the disease, leading investigators to suggest that hemoglobin could be a biomarker in COPD, according to a recent study published in ERJ Open Research.

Investigators conducted an analysis of hemoglobin from participants in the COPDGene study, an observational study to identify genetic factors associated with COPD, to examine symptoms, quality of life, functional performance, and acute exacerbations of COPD.

From 2,539 participants, investigators identified 366 as anemic, a condition where there is a decrease in red blood cells in the body. and 125 as , a condition where there is an increase in red blood cells. A higher proportion of anemic patients were African Americans and other comorbidities.

Investigators found that compared with patients who had normal hemoglobin, those with anemia had increased symptoms, worse quality of life and increased morbidity but those with polycythemia did not. Anemia was associated with a 63% higher rate of severe exacerbations compared with normal hemoglobin.

The investigators suggest there may be an optimal range of hemoglobin for COPD patients.

This study confirms previous studies that found that high levels of hemoglobin were associated with longer survival in patients with COPD.

Living At High Altitudes

High altitude locations have less oxygen in the environment than places that are in the plains. As a result, you take in less oxygen when you breathe in these locations. This can cause a shortage of oxygen in the blood known as hypoxia. And when that happens, your body amps up hemoglobin concentration to ensure you dont fall short of this vital element and to keep up required levels of oxygen supply.10

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High Number Of Eosinophils

Often, people are first tested and treated for more common causes of their symptoms. For example, they might undergo testing for infection and even receive antibiotics even though no infection is found. Because people still have symptoms after treatment, doctors often take a sample of tissue for examination , which will show eosinophils within the organ that is affected.

Treatment of these conditions frequently includes oral corticosteroids.

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Can I Prevent Elevated Red Blood Cells

You cant always prevent a high red blood cell count. But, there are things you can do to lower your risk. For example:

• Drink lots of water.
• Dont take iron supplements.
• Dont take anabolic steroids or other performance-enhancing drugs.
• Use appropriate medical devices, such as a CPAP, if you have sleep apnea.
• If you have heart failure, be sure to follow your healthcare providers treatment plan diligently.

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What Does The Research Say

The research indicates anemia was more common in asthmatic children than non-asthmatic children, that there is a positive correlation between higher hemoglobin and better lung function results in children, and that, in women, higher stored iron in the body decreased current asthma symptoms, and lower circulating iron and higher tissue iron need was correlated with lower lung function.1,2,3

The final pediatric study states, From the data of this study it can be concluded that incidence of iron deficiency anemia is not uncommon in pediatric patients with bronchial asthma. and Further studies are needed to assess the relationship between severity of asthma and the degree of anemia…4

How To Take Your Asthma Medications

Most asthma medications come as sprays or powders delivered using an inhaler. When you inhale the medication, it goes into the airways of the lungs, right where it is needed.

The most familiar type of asthma inhaler is the metered-dose inhaler . This pressurized device releases medication in a fine spray for you to inhale. Small children and others may also use a nebulizer to deliver their medication. This machine turns liquid medicine into a mist that can be inhaled slowly over 10 to 15 minutes.

Ask your health-care provider or pharmacist to show you how to use your inhaler. Also read the instructions that came with the inhaler and follow the priming and cleaning directions carefully.

Using a metered-dose inhaler

Each brand of MDI operates and needs to be maintained differently. Check the patient instruction sheet that came with your inhaler for details.

Priming and counting doses

When an MDI is new or hasnt been used in a while, the ingredients may separate. Priming helps ensure the dose you inhale has the right amount of medication.

Even the most perfectly timed inhalation wont help if theres no medicine left in the inhaler. You need to count each dose and each priming spray. By keeping count, you will know when to replace your inhaler. Many MDIs now have dose counters built in to make it easy for you to keep track of how much of your inhaler you have used.

How to inhale properly

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How Polycythaemia Is Diagnosed

Polycythaemia can be diagnosed by carrying out a blood test to check:

• the number of red blood cells in your blood
• the amount of space the red blood cells take up in the blood

A high concentration of red blood cells suggests you have polycythaemia.

Polycythaemia is sometimes only discovered during a routine blood test for another reason.

Your GP may refer you to a haematologist for more tests, to confirm the diagnosis and to determine the underlying cause.

These may include:

• a blood test to look for the changed JAK2 gene
• an ultrasound scan of your tummy to look for problems in your kidneys

Causes Of Anemic Hypoxia

In the setting of anemia, low hemoglobin levels result in a reduced ability of the blood to carry oxygen that is breathed in, and hence, a diminished supply of oxygen available to the tissues. Causes include:

• Anemia of any cause:This can include iron deficiency anemia, pernicious anemia, and chemotherapy-induced anemia.
• Hemorrhage:Hemorrhage can be obvious, such as from injuries sustained in an accident, or hidden due to internal bleeding.
• Methemoglobinemia: Methemoglobinemia, also known as affinity hypoxia, is an abnormal hemoglobin that doesnât bind oxygen very well.
• Carbon monoxide poisoning: With carbon monoxide poisoning, hemoglobin is unable to bind oxygen.

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Your Asthma Action Plan

An important part of your asthma management is a written Asthma Action Plan. Your health-care provider will work with you to create an Asthma Action Plan that tells you:

• What medicines to take and when to take them.
• Things you should do to prevent symptoms and deal with flare-ups.

Your Asthma Action Plan outlines treatment according to colored zones:

• Green Zone: Means you are doing well
• Yellow Zone: Means your asthma is getting worse
• Red Zone: Means you need immediate medical attention

Controlling your asthma may seem like a lot of work at first, but turning these steps into daily habits now can help you live a normal life. Remember to:

• Take action to control or avoid your individual asthma triggers.
• Keep a daily diary of your asthma symptoms to share with your health-care provider.
• Take your long-term control medicines daily or as prescribed.
• Always carry your quick-relief medicine with you.

Asthma Action Plan

What Are Normal Hemoglobin Values

The hemoglobin level is expressed as the amount of hemoglobin in grams per deciliter of whole blood, a deciliter being 100 milliliters.

The normal ranges for hemoglobin depend on the age and, beginning in adolescence, the gender of the person. The normal ranges are:

• Newborns: 17 to 22 gm/dL
• One week of age: 15 to 20 gm/dL
• One month of age: 11 to 15 gm/dL
• Children: 11 to 13 gm/dL
• Adult males: 14 to 18 gm/dL
• Adult women: 12 to 16 gm/dL
• Men after middle age: 12.4 to 14.9 gm/dL
• Women after middle age: 11.7 to 13.8 gm/dL

All of these values may vary slightly between laboratories. Some laboratories do not differentiate between adult and after middle age hemoglobin values. Pregnant females are advised to avoid both high and low hemoglobin levels to avoid increased risks of stillbirths and premature birth or low-birth-weight baby .

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