Anybody get this test result from a health screening?

Maybe you can look at people who work in body shops. I have some friends will silicosis. But we know where we picked this crap up. Iraq Afghanicrack and Somalia. One person went to England and had his right lung lavaged. He is due to go back in 6 weeks for the other lung but reports great success.

How are your liver levels and peptides?

 

Cecil, about ten years ago I picked up a forced air respirator by Breathe-cool. It is a unit with a respirator mask (no charcoal filters) , 50' of hose and the forced air unit that pushes fresh air thru the hose and to your respirator. It's pulls the air from the other end of the building.
I don't use it while running the airbrush but I do use it anytime I use the bigger spray gun on large saltwater fish or always when spraying automotive urethane gloss.
I do have a good high volume exhaust fan that I work in front of with the airbrush. I make sure my head is on the upwind side. It pulls the heat out of the shop in the winter but I have radiant heat with hot water pumped thru pipes in the concrete and that certainly helps. I've found that using a radiant heat lamp pointed towards me does a much better job of keeping me warm than any other type of ceramic heater etc.
In short, no way of knowing if your test results have anything to do with breathing paint fumes. All you can do is work as safely as possible and hope for the best. Our entire yearly exposure to paints is probably less that someone painting one car in his garage.

 

Cecil
I don't want to worry you but all test's can't be normal as you are still a Liberal Democrat !

 

Your doctor should have advised you to set up a screening for anemia and further blood work. Last time I was checked my numbers were fine. But I have had a couple of anomolies show up with past blood work and found out that one blood test does not a study make. Things like diet and stress, etc. can affect your numbers. One question - did you smoke cigarettes in years past? Smoke cigs for 10 years at some point in your life and IMO that would have a much bigger impact on your elevated numbers than a lack of respirator. I wouldn't worry about it but getting a follow up and second doc to look at things can't hurt as you mentioned...

 

The reference range of tests are where 80% of normal people will fall into. It’s not abnormal at all to have results slightly outside the reference range. Typically a high hemoglobin is found because there are symptoms of something else going on and a doctor will go looking to verify an issue. My gut tells me that your doctor found this as an incidental finding and that things will turn out to be normal. But definitely follow up with your doc and take some precautions.

 

To add to fishmasters reply... they also make a hood that you wear over your head with the same type of pumped in air system. We used to wear them 8-12 hours a day when i sprayed the clear coat on Calaway golf clubs. Were very comfortable and weighed very little.