“What does high hemoglobin mean in a child?”
My daughter has high hemoglobin levels. What does high hemoglobin mean in a child?
4 Answers
There are many causes of high hemoglobin ranging from dehydration to low oxygen states to abnormal hemoglobin or bone marrow disorders.
High hemoglobin could be caused by: 1) low oxygen levels as seen in some congenital heart defects 2) abnormal hemoglobin molecule that does not release oxygen readily 3)pulmonary disease with low oxygen levels 4) living at high altitudes 4) rare in children, an abnormality with bone marrow producing to many red blood cells. All of these should be easy to diagnose by a competent physician.
How high? Probably perfectly fine.
High hemoglobin is called polycythemia. It can be a primary problem called polycythemia Vera or can be caused by lung disease or kidney disease. If it is truly too high and the cause is not easily determined, the child should be referred to a pediatric hematologist.
