What Causes Hypervolemia?

Heart Failure

Congestive heart failure occurs when the heart cannot pump a sufficient amount of blood to meet the needs of the body. If the heart's ability to pump blood decreases and weakens, the kidneys are also impacted, as they then cannot work to filter fluids out of the body effectively. This can directly, and quickly, lead to the excess of fluid that occurs with hypervolemia. Many studies have found a high correlation with hypervolemia in patients with chronic heart failure. For some individuals with this condition, the hypervolemia never disappears completely, even with thorough treatment.

Pregnancy

Pregnancy causes a seemingly innumerable number of changes within a woman's body, and fluid retention is just one of them. This is typically due to the intense hormonal changes that occur during the gestational period. During this time, the body increases its cardiac output, which causes the volume of blood being moved to increase dramatically. This in and of itself causes a mild hypervolemic effect, but expectant mothers are typically protected from the bad side effects through hemodilution, which masks significant blood losses. Hypervolemia actually prepares the pregnant woman's body for childbirth so fewer red blood cells are lost during the process, especially in the case of hemorrhage.