What Causes High Hematocrit In Blood?

Posted on Fri, 18 Sep 2015

Question: just had a blood test. HCT at 54-4%
Other things normal
what does this mean??

Answered by Dr. Sassen S Kwasa (44 minutes later)

Brief Answer:
This means that your blood is concentrated. High Red Cell Count.

Detailed Answer:
This measure correlates with a hemoglobin of about 18 which is in normal range for a male. It is however on the higher side of normal. This could mean that you
1. are dehydrated when this blood was collected,
2. you can also see this in smokers,
3. also those with COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease), another group is
4. those who live in high altitudes
6. patients with OSA(Obstructive Sleep Apnea) or who snore alot at night,
5. those on chronic cteroids
6. those with PV (Polycythemia vera) which is a bone disorder that increased your red blood cells.
I hope this helps, at this level however, I would not worry about anything wrong, just watch that level.

I hope that this helps you out, thanks and please provide a follow up question if you have one, good day.

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Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Neel Kudchadkar