Over the last two decades concepts of hemorheology became established and required methods and techniques developed. Progress was made in the formation of a field of clinical hemorheology. The role of viscosity factors in various disorders has been established, especially in heart disease and dia betes. It has been recognized that hyperviscosity can be present if any one of the blood viscosity factors is increased, even if the viscosity of whole blood appears normal or even subnormal. While hyperviscosity may result in ischemic and thromboembolic episodes, the causes of hyperviscosity may include cancer, genetic abnormality, infection, metabolic disorders, and many others. The basic causes can be, in their turn, affected and reinforced by hyperviscosity. Superimposition of an added hyperviscosity factor onto al ready elevated blood viscosity might lead to precipitation of ischemic epi sodes. This review deals with the correlations between hyperviscosity and heart disease and among diabetes, cancer, and chronic anxiety. The predic tive value of hyperviscosity with respect to ischemic episodes and cancer metastases is discussed.
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