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High altitude: blood clot more likely?
Another semi-OT question...
I was raised in Michigan, then at age 25 I moved to Colo and lived in Breckenridge for a year, then LA for 6 months, then Breck for 6 months, then Boulder for a year, then LA...so I was living and working out and racing at both high and low altitudes for a few years. Then I broke my leg badly at 10,000 ft and recovered back in Boulder. A week or two into the recovery a blood clot went to my lungs and rather shut them down, so I went to the hospital. Now that I'm an old fart of 44 (magnum) the docs want me to start taking a mini-aspirin every day---especially because of my history of clotting, they say. Well...was I messing around with blood thickness back when I got that clot? Hmmm, maybe I'm naturally already over the legal level for hemo and have sludgy blood. I've never been tested for that stuff, though. I do have a blood test for cholesterol around here somewhere. My "good" levels are way high. Would there be a stat for hemo somewhere in a blood report? --That's maybe of less interest for someone who's not sporty, so maybe they don't point it out. I'd say I've always had really good aero, vo2max, recovery, enduro, all that kind of thing. What I'm driving at is in general does a kind of blood that's really good for enduro-sport also tend to have a somewhat higher risk of clotting? And in particular if someone is living/racing at both high and low altitudes (ranging from sea level to 11,000 feet several times a year) is that doing anything to increase clot risk? Do hemo levels relate to clotting? --JP outyourbackdoor.com |
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#2
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What I'm driving at is in general does a kind of blood that's really good for enduro-sport also tend to have a somewhat higher risk of clotting? And in particular if someone is living/racing at both high and low altitudes (ranging from sea level to 11,000 feet several times a year) is that doing anything to increase clot risk? Do hemo levels relate to clotting? Your pulmonary embolism (blood clot in the lung) after fracturing your leg is an unfortunate but predictable complication of the surgery itself (that's assuming you had surgery for it). All reasonably long surgery under general anaesthesia carries a risk of DVT and PE in the post-operative period (typically 10-20 days after the operation), but lower limb orthopaedic surgery is _particularly_ high risk for clots. If you didn't have surgery, simply the immobility of being in a cast and not walking on it can be enough to predispose to a DVT +/- PE. Living, working and training at high altitude tends to increase the haemoglobin concentration, and hence oxygen carrying capacity, of your blood. Your packed cell volume (PCV) or haematocrit, (which is just the ratio of the volume of red cells to the total blood volume), will increase, and hence your blood _will_ become more viscous. Taken to extremes (erythropoietin overdose, rapid transfusion of packed red cells, haematologic malignancies) the increase in viscosity can indeed dramatically increase your risk of sludging off vessels, especially the small ones. Simply living intermittently at the altitudes you're talking about should not significantly increase your risk of a venous thromboembolic event (VTE), though. Taking half an aspirin a day if you're in your mid 40's and male is probably good advice. It will _slightly_ lower your risk of VTE, but dramatically lower your risk of a heart attack or stroke. There is fairly good evidence, and some less so, of other likely health benefits of the humble aspirin as well, if you're keen for some lengthy reading. Kind regards, Chris Cole |
#3
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Chris,
I'm a clotter so is my whole family, Uncle almost died last year, cousin who almost died. So my uncle is a doctor who is obsessive in the research area. I'll send him your message and get his 2-cents to you. I can tell you that i have had classic clotting symptoms after intense training, and i can tell you i feel i saved myself by taking a ****load of aspirin AND fish-oil. As a matter of fact, almost my whole family is on Coumadin, and i feel the reason i've never had a blood-clot episode is because of the fish-oil. The research on it is outstanding. M.D's and Phd's have told me it is safe to take up 30 capsules of fish oil a day, which i do. Yes, it can THEORETICALLY cause a MARGINAL increase in hemmorhage, but i'm much more scared of clotting. High quality fish oil cap's with a high-potency of a balance of EPA and DHA, from the better companies that screen,filter,and distill it for contaminates, is something you might want to try. I recommend NOW, Source Naturals, and probably TwinLab for the best. And, at risk of sounding like a nut, I do recommend mega-dosing, it has saved me. My doc is very doubtful there is great danger from the mega-dosing. There are other supplements that help to some degree, i think b-vitamins, acetyl-carnitine, and inositol, and ginko biloba, and others. I much prefer to be on these supplements than have to take coumadin for the rest of my life. (knock on wood.) At least take 15 caps a day, and reduce if if messes with your digestive tract. You get used to most of the side effects, and it's worth noting that omega-3 fatty-acids are being researched for all kinds of disorders from cardiovascular to neurological and psychiatric conditions. Some doctors even go so far as to belieive a generalized deficiency of omega- and fish in our populations diet is a global health problem, Good luck. Chris Cole wrote: What I'm driving at is in general does a kind of blood that's really good for enduro-sport also tend to have a somewhat higher risk of clotting? And in particular if someone is living/racing at both high and low altitudes (ranging from sea level to 11,000 feet several times a year) is that doing anything to increase clot risk? Do hemo levels relate to clotting? Your pulmonary embolism (blood clot in the lung) after fracturing your leg is an unfortunate but predictable complication of the surgery itself (that's assuming you had surgery for it). All reasonably long surgery under general anaesthesia carries a risk of DVT and PE in the post-operative period (typically 10-20 days after the operation), but lower limb orthopaedic surgery is _particularly_ high risk for clots. If you didn't have surgery, simply the immobility of being in a cast and not walking on it can be enough to predispose to a DVT +/- PE. Living, working and training at high altitude tends to increase the haemoglobin concentration, and hence oxygen carrying capacity, of your blood. Your packed cell volume (PCV) or haematocrit, (which is just the ratio of the volume of red cells to the total blood volume), will increase, and hence your blood _will_ become more viscous. Taken to extremes (erythropoietin overdose, rapid transfusion of packed red cells, haematologic malignancies) the increase in viscosity can indeed dramatically increase your risk of sludging off vessels, especially the small ones. Simply living intermittently at the altitudes you're talking about should not significantly increase your risk of a venous thromboembolic event (VTE), though. Taking half an aspirin a day if you're in your mid 40's and male is probably good advice. It will _slightly_ lower your risk of VTE, but dramatically lower your risk of a heart attack or stroke. There is fairly good evidence, and some less so, of other likely health benefits of the humble aspirin as well, if you're keen for some lengthy reading. Kind regards, Chris Cole |
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