German doctors had to use an ancient, dangerous treatment to save a man, 39, after his lifestyle and existing medical conditions ended up thickening his blood to the point that it resembled milk. The man was symptomatic of hyperviscosity and extreme hypertriglyceridemia, doctors would discover. Hyperviscosity can lead to seizures because blood can’t flow around the body; extreme hypertriglyceridemia means you have far too many triglycerides, the matter found stored in fat cells in human blood. But extreme hyperviscosity can make plasmapheresis a tricky process, and when doctors tried to reverse the extreme hypertriglyceridemia, the man’s milk-blood ended up clogging the machine. Back then, it was done by doctors who used an array of grim cutting tools, or leeches, brought in to suck out a patient’s “bad” blood.

Source: National Post December 31, 2019 14:26 UTC