Less common symptoms associated with polycythemia vera include a tendency to bruise easily, frequent nosebleeds or bleeding from the gums, enlargement of the liver (hepatomegaly), and erythromelalgia, a condition characterized by a reddened or purplish appearance to the skin of the hands and feet.
Likewise, can polycythemia cause liver damage?
Polycythaemia vera (PV) occurs when too many red blood cells are made. When the bone marrow does not function correctly, the spleen compensates by producing red blood cells (known as extra medullary erythropoiesis), causing it to enlarge. The liver may also be affected and become enlarged (this is called hepatomegaly).
what happens if Polycythemia is not treated? Without treatment, the extra red blood cells in your veins can cause blood clots that reduce your blood flow. This makes you more likely to have a stroke and heart attack. It can also cause pain (angina) in your chest.
Besides, what are the dangers of polycythemia?
This can be associated with higher risk of thrombus or clot formation leading to strokes, heart attacks, pulmonary embolism, and possibly death. Another complication of polycythemia vera is the potential transformation into a blood cancer (leukemia), excessive bleeding (hemorrhage), or clotting problems.
Does polycythemia get worse?
It causes your marrow to make too many red blood cells so your blood is too thick. You may be more likely to have clots, a stroke, or a heart attack. This disease gets worse slowly, usually over many years.
19 Related Question Answers Found
Can polycythemia be cured?
Polycythemia vera (PV) doesn’t have a cure. However, treatments can help control the disease and its complications. PV is treated with procedures, medicines, and other methods. You may need one or more treatments to manage the disease.
Can polycythemia go away?
You want to feel better, not worse. Remember that secondary polycythemia is caused by an underlying condition, most of which are well-known and have multiple treatment options available. Once the underlying cause is corrected, symptoms of secondary polycythemia usually go away.
Does polycythemia run in families?
Most cases of polycythemia vera are not inherited. This condition is associated with genetic changes that are somatic, which means they are acquired during a person’s lifetime and are present only in certain cells. In rare instances, polycythemia vera has been found to run in families.
How long can you live with polycythemia?
Median survival in patients with polycythemia vera (PV), which is 1.5-3 years in the absence of therapy, has been extended to approximately 14 years overall, and to 24 years for patients younger than 60 years of age, because of new therapeutic tools.
Can you donate blood if you have polycythemia?
As a Polycythemia Vera patient, you can not give blood to the Red Cross. You can go to blood centers where they will accept blood from a PV patient for what is referred to as “therapeutic phlebotomy”. You will need to check with the respective blood center in your area.
How common is polycythemia vera?
Polycythemia vera affects slightly more men than women. The disorder is estimated to affect approximately 2 people per 100,000 in the general population. It occurs most often in individuals more than 60 years old, but can affect individuals of any age. It is extremely rare in individuals under 20.
How do you treat polycythemia naturally?
There’s no cure for polycythemia vera. Treatment focuses on reducing your risk of complications. These treatments may also ease your symptoms. Treatments to reduce the amount of red blood cells include: Reducing the amount of blood in your body. Medication to decrease blood cells. Medication to destroy cancer cells.
Is there a difference between polycythemia and polycythemia vera?
Absolute polycythemia occurs when more RBCs are produced than normal and their count is truly elevated. Dehydration is a common cause of relative polycythemia. Absolute polycythemia may be primary or secondary. Primary polycythemia (polycythemia vera) is a spontaneous proliferation of RBCs in the bone marrow.
What are the two types of polycythemia?
There are two main types of polycythemia: primary and secondary. The first is usually caused by a genetic mutation, whereas the latter is caused by an underlying condition that either prevents oxygen delivery to tissues (for example, a lung or heart condition), or a tumor that affects secretion of erythropoietin.
How do you get polycythemia?
It occurs when a mutation in a gene causes a problem with blood cell production. Normally, your body regulates the number of each of the three types of blood cells you have — red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets. But in polycythemia vera, your bone marrow makes too many of some blood cells.
How can you tell if a person has polycythemia?
Your doctor will diagnose PV based on your signs and symptoms, your age and overall health, your medical history, a physical exam, and test results. During the physical exam, your doctor will look for signs of PV. He or she will check for an enlarged spleen, red skin on your face, and bleeding from your gums.
How can I lower my RBC count?
If you have a high RBC count: Exercise to improve heart and lung function. Eat less red meat and iron-rich foods. Avoid iron supplements. Keep yourself well hydrated. Avoid diuretics, including coffee and caffeinated drinks. Stop smoking, especially if you have COPD or pulmonary fibrosis.
Does polycythemia cause memory loss?
It can cause a lot of symptoms, primarily due to obstruction of the blood flow. The blood flow is sluggish when you have too many blood cells, so people can have a number of problems like blurred vision, headaches, itching, night sweating, tingling in the fingers and toes, poor memory, fatigue, and weakness.
Can exercise lower red blood cell count?
Despite stimulated erythropoiesis, exercise can decrease the red blood cell mass by intravascular hemolysis mainly of senescent red blood cells, which is caused by mechanical rupture when red blood cells pass through capillaries in contracting muscles, and by compression of red cells e.g., in foot soles during running
Can you live a long life with polycythemia vera?
Polycythemia Vera: Prognosis and Life Expectancy. Polycythemia vera (PV) is a rare blood cancer. While no cure exists for PV, it can be controlled through treatment, and you can live with the disease for many years.
Can dehydration cause polycythemia?
Relative polycythemia is an apparent rise of the erythrocyte level in the blood; however, the underlying cause is reduced blood plasma (hypovolemia, cf. dehydration). Relative polycythemia is often caused by loss of body fluids, such as through burns, dehydration, and stress.
How do you test PV?
To diagnose PV, your doctor will perform a test called a complete blood count (CBC) to see if your number of red blood cells is higher than normal. Your doctor may also test your blood to look for amounts of a hormone called erythropoietin. Lower-than-normal levels of this hormone can be a sign of PV.
What are the side effects of polycythemia vera?
What are the symptoms of polycythemia vera? Lack of energy (fatigue) or weakness. Headache. Dizziness. Shortness of breath and trouble breathing while lying down. Vision problems, such as double vision, blurred vision, and blind spots. Inability to concentrate. Night sweats. Face and becomes red and warm (flushed)
Does aspirin lower red blood cell count?
RESULTS: Acute or chronic doses of aspirin reduced the RBC count, hemoglobin and other red cell indices as compared to controls. CONCLUSION: Aspirin in either acute or chronic doses induces anemia associated with leucocytosis in mice; the anemia does not seem to be induced due to alterations in iron metabolism.