xanzaba - Sorry for your BFN.Which day it is?Does polycythemia affect TTC?I too have slightly elevated level of red blood cells.
How high is your hematocrit/hemoglobin? Generally, high red blood cell count is not considered dangerous. For 6 months they told me I was dehydrated. If you do have something, the solution is generally to donate blood.
There are two types of polycythemia- polycythemia vera, or primary polycythemia, and secondary polycythemia. Polycythemia vera does cause pregnancy problems, but is
very rare in people younger than 60.
For secondary polycythemia, it depends what is causing it. A couple of years ago, I had a whole work up for polycythemia because I was having bone pain and they could not find anything except high hematocrit/hemoglobin. I was tested for polycythemia vera, which is usually caused by a genetic mutation, and I don't have the mutation. For secondary, they test for a whole bunch of things including fibroids. They couldn't find a cause of my polycythemia and, after a blood donation, my hematocrit was down to 44%, the lowest ever. They check your platelet count, and mine has always been low/normal. They could do a bone marrow biopsy, but since it is so invasive and my hematocrit had generally been only moderately high (usually around 50%, up to 54%) they haven't done it. They told me it was probably caused by stress and not to worry anymore.
However, on a routine blood test my hematocrit is back up to 49%, hemoglobin 16, so I think it's worth watching. Fortunately there is a doctor here that is an expert on polycythemia, so I'm trying to get an appointment with him. I also scheduled a blood donation for next Wednesday in the meantime.
