Plasma Volume Testing

[Galixie]

Does anyone know where it is still possible to get blood volume (plasma volume) tested in the US? I'd be willing to travel, but would prefer to find something nearby. I'm in Washington state.

 

[Galixie]

According to the internet, Daxor has a blood volume testing method, but I can't seem to figure out where any labs that offer it are located. I tried emailing the company almost a month ago to ask, and never got any response.

 

[kushami]

@Galixie , I gathered from titbits here and there on forums that Daxor never gained much of a foothold.

There’s a new piece of equipment just approved last year for medical use. I don’t know whether anyone in the US has bought a medical version yet, but perhaps you could email the company and ask.

The company is called Detalo Health.

I know that the non-medical version (for studies, sports science) has been used in some dysautonomia studies in the US.

The measurement technique is called CO2 rebreathing.

(Also NASA has one at the Johnson Space Center!)

 

[kushami]

The measurement technique is called CO2 rebreathing.

Oops, that should be CO (carbon monoxide) rebreathing. You breathe in a tiny amount that acts as a tracer in the blood.

 

[kushami]

Does anyone know where it is still possible to get blood volume (plasma volume) tested in the US? I'd be willing to travel, but would prefer to find something nearby. I'm in Washington state.

Here is an old thread on another forum with folks discussing being tested:
https://www.dinet.org/forums/topic/17219-blood-volume/

(You only need to read the first page for info on testing; the rest is talking about POTS and hypovolemia.)

I’m afraid it’s ten years old, so some of the specialists mentioned may have retired. The Cleveland Clinic does still has blood volume measurement listed on its website, which I’m sure you’ve seen.

 

[kushami]

The paper on hypovolemia and syncope that is mentioned in the thread can be found here:
http://www.daxor.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/Fouad-Syncope.pdf

It might be interesting in terms of discussing other parameters that were measured e.g. hematocrit.

 

[Galixie]

The paper on hypovolemia and syncope that is mentioned in the thread can be found here:
http://www.daxor.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/Fouad-Syncope.pdf

It might be interesting in terms of discussing other parameters that were measured e.g. hematocrit.

Thanks.

I'm in this weird limbo currently where I'm not treating my hypovolemia while waiting for there to be some kind of test to prove the problem (which I have previously been treated for for years) actually exists. I have vague hope that a hemodynamics test done by a cardiologist might suffice. But I don't know if I'll be able to get that test done either. I haven't even had the initial appointment with a cardiologist yet.

 

[kushami]

@Galixie , I noticed that Duke University seems to have a DAXOR unit:
https://daxor.com/multi-center-stud...-clinical-utility-for-heart-failure-patients/

And this doctor treats autonomic problems at Duke so would know about low blood volume:

https://www.dukehealth.org/find-doctors-physicians/camille-g-frazier-mills-md-mhs

 

[Galixie]

The cardiologist I saw didn't know what a hemodynamics test was, so that test didn't happen.

It's been a little over year since I last had IV hydration to treat the low blood volume. The dizzy spells are getting a little worse. I was at a grand opening of a local store last Saturday and had to find a spot to sit down. But so many things seem to be going wrong in my body at once now that it's just one problem among many.

 

[kushami]

@Galixie , I’m sorry to hear that.

Did the IV hydration help a lot when you had it a year ago?

I’m in the opposite camp – I spent ages trying treatments to increase blood volume only to find out mine was normal (process of deduction, no testing).

I could have saved a lot of time and resources if it had been tested at the start.

 

[Galixie]

Did the IV hydration help a lot when you had it a year ago?

It did help a lot with the dizzy spells.
For me the just plain saline (lactated ringer) helped more than any versions with added vitamins. I tried the vitamin infusions first though, because the cost of getting the infusion was so high anyway that adding vitamins to it seemed cost effective. But IV vitamins are mildly dehydrating, so I had to do vitamins and additional saline to counter-balance that effect. In the end all I really need is the additional saline.

 

[kushami]

@Galixie , forgive me if I’m being a busy body, but have you tried your local Dysautonomia International support group on Facebook?

There are autonomic specialists who will order IV saline for patients who have found other treatments ineffective. If the autonomic specialist is far away, they can often co-ordinate with your local doctor.

A couple of people on the DINET forum have managed to get this set up, although it wasn’t a quick process.
https://www.dinet.org/

(All in the US.)

Wish I could send you the four free sessions I had in hospital here in Australia!