Hct by itself is incomplete predictor of whole blood viscosity. You also need to understand plasma viscosity, which is driven by inflammation. So as I’ve reviewed, two guys with Hct of 50 could have very different whole blood viscosities. Blanket statements about xx Hct being harmless and so forth make no sense without understanding the other moving parts. Add on top of this the cardiovascular status of the patient and other health considerations like BP, NO capacity, endothelial function, and it becomes pretty clear that blanket statements regarding Hct levels are asinine (EDIT: maybe that’s too harsh. “Well-meaning but come up short” perhaps a better more compassionate description).
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