Elevated hemoglobin: causes, symptoms, treatment

The reasons for which there may be an increased level of hemoglobin in the blood, are very different. This is, as a rule, the signal of the human body about the violation of the work of some internal organs. But it is possible to increase the level of hemoglobin and as a result of exposure to specific environmental conditions or a short-term change due to physical exertion.

People living in mountainous regions, with increased hemoglobin, compensate for the insufficient level of oxygen at a high altitude. Also hemoglobin increases in athletes, for example, runners and skiers. Even after a long walk in the fresh air, this indicator of blood may increase for a while. The normal level of hemoglobin for an average woman is about 120-140, and for a man - from 135 to 160. When the norm rises by 20 or more units, high hemoglobin is diagnosed .

If a person has noticeable symptoms of elevated hemoglobin, an appropriate blood test should be performed, as well as additional tests to find out the reasons. Among the symptoms can be noted excessive fatigue, pallor or, on the contrary, redness of the skin, loss of appetite, visual impairment, drowsiness, disruption of the genitourinary organs.

Elevated hemoglobin: causes

If elevated hemoglobin is determined, the causes and consequences can be severe enough, so you should immediately contact your doctor for tests and diagnosis. Such a violation is dangerous because blood that becomes more viscous and thick, unable to move normally through the vessels, and this can lead to blood clots and plaques, to heart attack and stroke. Before attempting to stabilize the indicator, it is desirable to ascertain whether the pathology of the circulatory system or internal disease is the real cause of the problem.

With such a symptom, as the increased hemoglobin of the cause may consist of the following pathologies: insufficiency of the pulmonary and cardiovascular systems, intestinal obstruction, oncological lesions, increased blood density, erythrocytosis (increased number of erythrocytes in the blood serum), hemoglobinemia (increase in hemoglobin in the blood plasma ). When a patient has a high level of glycosylated hemoglobin, the development of diabetes mellitus is very often diagnosed. The reason for this is the excess of glucose in the blood.

Methods for stabilizing the hemoglobin level

It is very important to timely stabilize the elevated hemoglobin, the causes of which need to be identified and eliminated. Measures are taken immediately, to avoid the sad consequences. The level of hemoglobin is directly dependent on the diet and is adjusted by limiting the ingestion of iron and proteins of animal origin. From the menu, products that contain iron are excluded first. These include fruits and berries of red color, some cereals (especially buckwheat), red meat and offal. Fat food can increase cholesterol, its high content in viscous blood threatens the formation of thrombi and serious heart diseases.

As a method of reduction, use erythrophoresis. This procedure lowers hemoglobin by removing red blood cells from the bloodstream, but it is used only in case of ineffectiveness or contraindication of other methods of treatment.

There are also medicines, such as Curantil and Trental. They are used to dilute blood and lower elevated hemoglobin. Prescribe medication can only be the attending physician, in no case do you need to self-medicate.