Home Hematocrit / Hemoglobin meter review and information

Bigbear said:
I get a perscription for phlebotomy and if its really high I just pay for a private phlebotomy or sometimes like you said I just drop the doses drastically and it lowers on its own.
An average adult man (~190 lb / 86 kg) has about 5 L of blood.
If you remove 0.5 L, that’s 10% of total volume.
If your starting HCT is 57%, removing 10% of blood with that HCT gives:
New HCT ≈ 57 % × (4.5 L / 5 L) = ~51.3 %
Then, within 1–2 days, plasma volume expands, further diluting the blood, which can drop it another 2–3 points, bringing you roughly to 48–49% — right around your target.
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I wasn't aware private/paid phlebotomy is an option in Canada (I'm in Ontario). I take finasteride, so I'm ineligible to donate blood. I'd much prefer to go the private route.
 
vancitybb said:
I had a look, but I see this in their FAQ section:
View attachment 108952
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I think @Sorbate figured out how to do it without a doctor. Its actually quite silly why need a doctor's referral then you could just get it done at the hospital for free. You could try just showing them your bloodwork with high hematocrit. I used thrm numerous times and only ever used a referral once.
 
I just got bloodwork done, my Hemoglobin is at 186, Hematocrit is at 0.53, but red blood cell count is well within the reference range. I wonder if this is just due to being under-hydrated, as it was a 7:00 am draw.
 
Bigbear said:
I think @Sorbate figured out how to do it without a doctor. Its actually quite silly why need a doctor's referral then you could just get it done at the hospital for free. You could try just showing them your bloodwork with high hematocrit. I used thrm numerous times and only ever used a referral once.
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I just told them I wanted it done. When the lady hesitated, I mentioned that I had the gear to do it myself, and if they couldn’t do it, I was going to do it myself. But I preferred if I didn’t have to. I mentioned I didn’t have a real doctor and only an online one and that this has been an issue for 10 years because I’m on trt. I used to go to the blood clinic but I got a false positive for a std and they don’t let me donate anymore, that is why I called you guys.

Then they came out and did it.

Truthfully I didn’t let them tell me no, they kinda tried to and I just forced the issue, lol.

Now I’m in the system so no worries.

I think it’s like $250 for them to come to your house.
 
DeeKnows said:
"False positive" 😉🤣
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Yep. Then they tested it properly again 4 more times and each time was negative.

So I had nothing. Didn’t think I would because I know my wife isn’t the type to cheat.

I remember when I had my colon issues, the er doctor asked if maybe I had a std. Said I wa s married for like 25 years so likely not, he said, well you never know, people cheat. I doubted my wife had, so I waited for the blood test results and it came back negative.
 
I agree with the overall takeaway here. Home meters aren’t a replacement for proper labs, but they’re useful for trend tracking, especially if you’re someone who runs compounds known to push RBC/HCT. I’ve seen enough consistency between home checks and lab work to trust them as a reference point, not gospel. Hydration, timing, and technique matter more than people think. If it keeps someone more aware and proactive instead of reactive, that alone has value.
 
Bigbear said:
Look into victory express they have a few clinics around ontario.
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So helpful. I need phlebotomy every few months and hate arguing with physicians or waiting until my HCT is 0.55 and I feel like crap - gladly pay $150 to avoid that. I also like the private route as you can direct them more easily as to where to poke you if you have preferences. I had a clot once in the antecubital area and since then I try to get everything done as distal as possible as a precaution.
 
Bigbear said:
Im just throwing this out here but my gp told me he was speaking to a hematologest and she said if im on trt haveing hematocrit of .54 is fine. That seems high to me I get phlebotomys for anything over .50
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I think there's some guidelines that say to do phlebotomy at HCT of 0.55 so that's where that's probably coming from. Unfortunately medicine is becoming more guideline directed than actually listening to patients (I say this as someone in medicine). I myself feel crappy at a HCT of 0.50 and get considerably worse after that so I try to get phlebotomy once I hit 0.50.
 
kickoverload said:
I definitely will look into buying on of those machines for testing, @Sorbate god this guy has interesting stories, love em! :P
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I can add another few data point for its use / accuracy. I just tested myself twice the day before going in for bloodwork last Friday. I got two results:

175 Hb- 51%
172 Hb - 52%

Blood test results (Serum blood, not fingertip): 175 Hb - 53%

That's certainly within the error range of 5% which most machines claim.


So, in terms of measuring hemoglobin, the home machine seems to be on point once again, but the lab calcuation of HCT is not quite the same, I think they use a centerfuge and the ratio of plasma and plateletes come in to play...not positive there, but I'm not very concerned. That's the part that can easily be affected by dehydration, which occurs to me early mornings often. My Serum blood readings tend to be a bit higher than the fingetip reading I do at home, or are done at the blood donation clinic, so this too is consistent.

Hope that helps a bit. Happly bloodletting!
 
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