Polycythemia vera: high red blood cell levels—symptoms, clot risk, and treatment like phlebotomy.
- Symptoms can include headaches, dizziness, itching after hot showers, and facial redness.
- Main risk is blood clots (stroke, heart attack, DVT/PE) due to thickened blood.
- Treatment includes phlebotomy, low-dose aspirin and medicines in higher-risk patients.
Polycythemia vera is a bone marrow disorder where the body makes too many red blood cells. This increases blood thickness and raises the risk of clotting.
Doctors diagnose it with high hemoglobin/hematocrit on CBC and confirm with additional tests (often JAK2 mutation testing) and assessment of secondary causes of high hemoglobin.
Treatment aims to reduce clot risk—regular phlebotomy to keep hematocrit controlled, low-dose aspirin when appropriate, and cytoreductive medicines for higher-risk patients under specialist guidance.