What does it mean when your red blood count is high?
What does it mean when your red blood count is high?
A high RBC count may be a result of sleep apnea, pulmonary fibrosis, and other conditions that cause low oxygen levels in the blood. Performance-enhancing drugs like protein injections and anabolic steroids can also increase RBCs. Kidney disease and kidney cancers can lead to high RBC counts as well.
What does red blood stand for?
Red blood cells (RBCs), also called erythrocytes, are cells that circulate in the blood and carry oxygen throughout the body. The RBC count totals the number of red blood cells that are present in your sample of blood.
What causes too much blood in body?
Polycythemia vera (PV) is a rare disease that causes your body to make too many red blood cells. Your blood may become too thick. This causes serious health problems. PV increases the risk of abnormal blood clots, which could lead to a heart attack or stroke.
Where to go for high red blood cell count?
Mayo Clinic offers appointments in Arizona, Florida and Minnesota and at Mayo Clinic Health System locations. Our general interest e-newsletter keeps you up to date on a wide variety of health topics. A high red blood cell count is an increase in oxygen-carrying cells in your bloodstream.
What does a high red blood cell count mean?
A high red blood cell count means the number of red blood cells in your bloodstream is higher than normal. Normal red blood cell counts are: For men, 4.7 to 6.1 million red blood cells per microliter of blood For women, 4.2 to 5.4 million red blood cells per microliter of blood
When to call the Cleveland Clinic for rectal bleeding?
Rectal bleeding can be bright red or darker in color. You can also have rectal bleeding without being able to see it. This can happen when you have very small amounts of blood in your stool — called occult bleeding. Cleveland Clinic is a non-profit academic medical center. Advertising on our site helps support our mission.
What happens if there are too many red blood cells?
If too many RBCs are produced and released, then a person can develop polycythemia. This can cause decreased blood flow and related problems. While an RBC count can be used to detect a problem with red blood cell production and/or lifespan, it cannot determine the underlying cause.