A hematologist is a physician who is trained and specializes in the diagnosis, treatment and/or prevention of a variety of diseases related to blood, both benign and malignant. The most common blood disorders that are considered benign include anemia and bleeding or clotting disorders. Malignant blood diseases include leukemia, multiple myeloma, Hodgkin and non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

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In order to be certified as a hematologist, a doctor has to undergo three years of residency in a specialized area such as pediatrics or internal medicine. This is followed by a two to four years of further training in hematology.

Hematology is one of many distinct subspecialties within internal medicine, and their job often overlaps with oncology (the branch of medicine associated with cancer). Hematologist also works closely with other physicians from other departments including surgery, pathology, infectious disease, and psychology. These skills are vital when interpreting blood test results and formulating a treatment plan based on those results.

A hematologist has an opportunity to work in various settings including a private laboratory analyzing blood samples, in a private office handling paperwork and research or spend their time in a medical facility performing surgical procedures.

10 Reasons to Visit a Hematologist Near Me

You will be referred to a hematologist if your primary care doctor or family doctor suspects or diagnoses you with blood disorder. Consulting the advice and expertise of a hematologist will hopefully give you some assurance.

Here are ten reasons why you may want to visit a hematologist near me:

Easy Bruising.

Easy bruising occurs when blood vessels burst and leak blood under the skin’s surface. It can result from disorders affecting the surrounding skin and subcutaneous tissues, platelet function, and number, coagulation cascade function or the blood vessels. Blood thinners or drugs that decrease the blood’s clotting ability may cause easy bruising. Chemotherapy can also decrease the number of platelets in your body. A low platelet count increases the risk of easy bruising. In rare cases, easy bruising can be an early sign of blood or bone marrow cancer.

It is hard differentiating between bruising that is considered normal against one clinically significant.

It is best to consult a hematologist who can evaluate your symptoms and rule out any blood-related disorders.

Swollen and Painless lymph Nodes.

Lymph nodes are tiny, bean-shaped organs placed in strategic positions all over the body. They act as the first line of defence against invading microbes that may evade the phagocytic effects of the white blood cells. A swollen lymph node can be attributed to so many causes. Most commonly, a swollen, tender and painful lymph node is evident of a bacterial infection and usually resolves when the causative agent or microbes is eliminated. When more than one area of the lymph node is swollen, it is known as generalized lymphadenopathy. Certain medications, immunological disease, and cancers Hodgkin and non-Hodgkin lymphoma can cause this kind of swelling. In rare cases, cancer can originate in another area of the body and migrate to the nearby or distant lymph node, a process known as metastasis. Such cancers are at the advanced stage and are associated with a bad prognosis.

A swollen lymph node does not always necessitate an immediate visit to a medical doctor. If, however, your doctor suspects any blood malignancies such as lymphoma or leukemia, he will refer you to a hematologist-oncologist who will carry out additional tests and examinations. Read on for more of ten reasons why you may want to visit a hematologist near me.

Determine Your HIV Status.

This is another reason you might want to visit a hematologist. Testing at least once a year for HIV is a good sexual health practice for everyone who is sexually active, even if you know you haven’t put yourself at risk of infection. You might want to visit a hematologist if you are having regular unprotected sex (sex without a condom) with someone who is HIV positive or whose HIV status is unknown; having casual sex with many partners; and injecting drugs and sharing needles, syringes, or other drug equipment with others. Also, all pregnant women are recommended to get tested for HIV as early as possible during each pregnancy.

It is highly recommended by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) that everyone 13 to 64 years old gets tested for HIV at least once a year.

To Determine your Full Blood Count

A complete blood count is a routine laboratory test done to assess your general health status and also to diagnose a wide range of medical conditions, including anemia, infections (bacteria, viral, parasitic) and blood cancer. A complete blood count is usually the first test requested by any physician in any clinical setting

Also known as full blood exam, measures several components of your blood, including the red cells, hemoglobin, white cells, platelets and hematocrit (fraction of red blood cells to the plasma in your blood). An abnormal deviation from the normal range in cell counts as revealed in a full blood exam may signal an underlying medical condition that needs further medical evaluation. Read on for more of ten reasons why you may want to visit a hematologist near me

A hematologist may request for a complete blood count for a variety of reasons:

  • To diagnose a medical condition: If your doctor suspects you have an infection or if you are experiencing symptoms such as weakness, high body temperature, fatigue, bruising or bleeding, a complete blood count may help diagnose the exact cause of these signs and symptoms.
  • To monitor the effectiveness of medical treatment: Your physician may request for your complete blood profile to track the success of any drugs or therapy on a particular disease. Any abnormal blood profile should return to the normal range only if the treatment is effective.
  • To monitor a medical condition: Your doctor may request a complete blood count to monitor your medical condition, especially if it affects your blood cell counts.

Chronic Recurrent Bacterial Infections

Recurrent bacterial infection is among the most frequent symptoms seen in people with blood malignancies, acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), in cancer patients undergoing high-dose chemotherapy and rare genetic disorders that affect the body’s ability to fight infection such as X-linked agammaglobulinemia. Recurrent bacterial infections can also be caused by high blood sugar, as seen in people with diabetes. This is because sugar is a medium for bacteria to multiply.

Blood Donation

Donating your blood may be another reason you might want to visit a hematologist. Every day, thousands of people all over the world (including accident and burn victims, patients undergoing surgery, people with cancer or bleeding disorders) rely on receiving donated blood and blood products to stay alive. Donating blood can also be a great gesture of giving back to your community. Besides, donating blood also has its own benefits, and they include:

  • Stimulates the bone marrow to produce new blood cells
  • Free health screening.
  • Minimizes the risk of cardiovascular diseases
  • Refresh and renew the blood system
  • Burns calories

However, there are certain requirements that must be satisfied before you are allowed to donate any blood. They include:

  • You must weigh at least 110lbs or 50kg
  • You must be above 18 years of age. 16 and 17-year-olds can be allowed to donate only if a Minor Donor Permission Form is signed by a parent or guardian.
  • You have a valid means of identification such as a DMV identification card, passport, driver’ license, etc.
  • You have not engaged in sex for money or drugs since 1977.
  • You are screened from diseases like hepatitis, HIV/AIDS, and lymphomas
  • No current history of kidney, lung or liver failure

Anemia

Anemia is a common medical condition in which there is a reduction in the total amount of red blood cells or hemoglobin in the blood, resulting in the lowered ability of the blood to transport oxygen and nutrients to all parts of the body. Symptoms of anemia tend to develop very slowly or go unnoticed because the symptoms are often vague and may include weakness, feeling tired, chest pain, headache, lightheadedness, irregular heartbeat, and shortness of breath. However, some forms of anemia can present with specific signs and symptoms. There are different types of anemia, each having its own cause and treatment. Some forms of anemia that develops during pregnancy are considered to be normal.Read on for more of ten reasons why you may want to visit a hematologist near me

Different types of anemia and their etiology include:

  • Aplastic anemia: Rare form of anemia, caused by infections, autoimmune disease and exposure to certain chemicals
  • Vitamin deficiency anemia: Caused by deficiency of vitamin B12 and folic acid.
  • Anemia of chronic disease: Associated with malignancies, autoimmune diseases, inflammatory bowel diseases, and kidney disease.
  • Iron deficiency anemia: Caused by excessive blood loss, stomach ulcer, and regular use of pain relievers such as aspirin.

Depending on the presenting symptoms and severity of your anemia, your doctor may recommend some tests to determine the type of anemia before referring you to a hematologist for necessary treatment.

Blood Malignancies

An abnormal finding on your blood test may cause your physician to suspect a blood malignancy such as leukemia. In order to confirm the diagnosis, a hematologist will need to perform a bone marrow aspiration and biopsy. Signs and symptoms of blood cancer to also look for include; persistent weakness and fatigue, night sweats, unexplained weight loss, itchy skin or rash, frequent and recurrent infection, high body temperature, bone and joint pain, bleeding from the nose, enlargement of the spleen, generalized lymphadenopathy, coughing and chest pain.

Bleeding Disorder

Normal blood clotting involves interaction between platelets and plasma protein collectively known as coagulation factors. A defect in any of these factors can result in varying degree of bleeding problems.

If you have a history of excessive bleeding after minor cut, unexplained nosebleeds, profuse and prolonged menstrual bleeding, bleeding into soft tissues, joint spaces or muscles, or if you have a child who is experiencing similar symptoms, you may have what is known as a bleeding disorder. If your doctor believes your symptoms are caused by a defect in blood clotting mechanism, you will be referred to see a hematologist for additional test and examination. Read on for more of ten reasons why you may want to visit a hematologist near me

Examples of specific bleeding disorders include:

  • Von Willebrand disease (types I, II, and III).
  • Factor VIII deficiency (Hemophilia A)
  • Factor IX deficiency (Hemophilia B)
  • Factor X deficiency
  • Factor XI deficiency (Hemophilia C)
  • Idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura
  • Disseminated intravascular coagulation
  • Acquired platelet function defects

Bleeding disorders can also result from an underlying disease such as liver cirrhosis, gastrointestinal disease, and vitamin deficiency. Some bleeding disorders are present at birth and passed down through generations, with males mostly affected

Genotyping and Blood Group Compatibility

Another reason you may want to visit a hematologist is to know your hemoglobin genotype and blood group. Reasons why should know your blood group includes:

  • Rhesus incompatibility: Rhesus incompatibility is a condition that occurs during pregnancy if a woman is Rh-negative and her baby is Rh-positive. Rhesus incompatibility rarely causes any problem in a first pregnancy. However, if Rhesus antibodies do develop during the second or subsequent pregnancy, they could result in lethal consequences. Rhesus disease can cause severe anemia (caused by excessive destruction of the fetal red cell), jaundice (excessive yellowing of the eyes and skin), brain damage (known as kernicterus), pronounced swelling in the baby (fetal hydrops), heart failure and stillbirth. This can simply be prevented by knowing your blood group
  • In cases of emergency situations where a quick blood transfusion is required, knowing your blood group will help prevent possible complications of a transfusion reaction which include acute renal failure, pulmonary edema, anemia, and circulatory shock.
  • Knowing your blood group will prevent you from making the wrong choices when it comes to choosing a life partner. This is crucial as to avoid raising offspring with genetic blood disorders such as sickle cell anemia, thalassemia,

 

 

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References

Ameh, S., Tarfa, F., & Ebeshi, B. (2012). Traditional Herbal Management of Sickle Cell Anemia: Lessons from Nigeria. Anemia2012, 1-9. doi: 10.1155/2012/607436

Deptała, A. (2016). Dawn and dusk of internal medicine: a view of a qualified oncologist and hematologist. Polish Archives Of Internal Medicine126(12), 1040-1045. doi: 10.20452/pamw.3731

Korones, D. (2016). On Children, Blood, and Cancer: A new section of PBC. Pediatric Blood & Cancer63(11), 1880-1880. doi: 10.1002/pbc.26088

Sehgal, K., Choksey, U., Dalal, R., Tina, D., & Shanaz, K. (2013). Reference range evaluation of complete blood count parameters with emphasis on newer research parameters on the complete blood count analyzer Sysmex XE-2100. Indian Journal Of Pathology And Microbiology56(2), 120. doi: 10.4103/0377-4929.118698