What does high viscosity in blood mean?
Hyperviscosity syndrome is a condition that occurs when your blood becomes so thick that your body’s overall blood flow decreases. Hyperviscosity can be caused by your blood cells changing shape or by an increase in serum proteins, red blood cells, white blood cells, or platelets.
What is responsible for the viscosity of blood?
The viscosity of plasma is dependent on the concentration of plasma proteins, such as fibrinogen, α1-globulins, α2-globulins, β-globulins, and γ-globulins (Connes et al., 2008). Any elevation in the concentration of these proteins can cause plasma, and thus whole blood, viscosity to increase (Kesmarky et al., 2008).
What causes high viscosity?
Viscosity is governed by the strength of intermolecular forces and especially by the shapes of the molecules of a liquid. Liquids whose molecules are polar or can form hydrogen bonds are usually more viscous than similar nonpolar substances.
What causes more viscous blood?
Increased blood viscosity can be caused by an increase in red cell mass or increased red cell deformity, increased plasma levels of fibrinogen and coagulation factors, and dehydration.
What is the test for blood viscosity?
Plasma viscometry tests yield exceptionally reliable results when assessing the thickness of the blood. Viscometry is also cost-effective compared to other biochemical methods of assessing blood viscosity, can be performed with the same EDTA tubes used to take a full blood count and is quick and easy to perform.
What does viscous mean in blood?
Viscosity can be defined as the resistance of fluids against flow. The resistance for blood circulation includes friction between the blood elements and between the vessel lumen and blood. In this state, according to Poiseuille’s equation, blood flow rate decreases by 16.67%, which may lead to tissue ischemia.
How do you reduce blood viscosity?
When blood is viscous, in addition to a high blood pressure required for the blood circulation, blood vessel walls are also easy to be damaged. While this issue is very important, currently the only method to reduce the blood viscosity is to take medicine, such as aspirin.
What is meant by blood viscosity?
What is normal range for blood thickness?
What do the results mean?
| Blood component | Normal levels |
|---|---|
| red blood cell | In men: 4.32-5.72 million cells/mcL In women: 3.90-5.03 million cells/mcL |
| hemoglobin | In men: 135-175 grams/L In women: 120-155 grams/L |
| hematocrit | In men: 38.8-50.0 percent In women: 34.9-44.5 percent |
| white blood cell count | 3,500 to 10,500 cells/mcL |
How can I lower my blood viscosity naturally?
Blood-thinning foods, drinks, and supplements
- Turmeric.
- Ginger.
- Cayenne peppers.
- Vitamin E.
- Garlic.
- Cassia cinnamon.
- Ginkgo biloba.
- Grape seed extract.
Why is high viscosity bad?
Viscosity measures a fluid’s resistance to flow; honey, for example, is more viscous than water. The more viscous the blood, the harder the heart must work to move it around the body and the more likely it is to form clots inside arteries and veins.