Polycythemia vera is a myeloproliferative disease (a group of diseases in which the bone marrow produces excess cells) in which the bone marrow produces excess red blood cells. It occurs in all age groups and is more common in men than women. Most patients with this disease are asymptomatic, but some symptoms include generalized itching (especially after exposure to warm water), gouty arthritis, peptic ulcer disease, and erythromelalgia (or the sudden,severe burning in hands and feet followed by a reddish or bluish discoloration of the skin). Patients with this disease are susceptible to thrombosis, or blood clots.
The diagnosis of polycythemia vera is often made on the basis of laboratory tests. Generally, the hemoglobin or hematocrit is elevated, and the platelet and white blood cell count may also be increased. They will also show a low erythropoietin (a hormone that is needed as a precursor in red blood cell production in the bone marrow) level.
This disease cannot be cured, but is treated by therapeutic phlebotomy. This reduces the amount of hematocrit in the body and reduces the risk of blood clots. Therapeutic phlebotomy may be combined with other therapies to treat all the symptoms. Low dose aspirin is often prescribed to reduce the risk of thrombosis. Other therapies include interferon injections and in rare cases, bone marrow transplants.
Reference: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000589.htm
http://www.umm.edu/ency/article/000589.htm
