Iron deficiency anaemia
Updates to Article Attributes
Body
was changed:
Iron deficiency anaemia is a common cause of anaemia and a common precipitant to radiological investigation.
Epidemiology
Amongst men and postmenopausal women, the incidence in the developed world is around 2%. Among premenopausal women, the incidence is greater and in most cases, investigation is not required.
Pathology
Aetiology
Causes may be related to reduced iron input, failure of storage or excessive losses:
- inadequate stores at birth
- insufficient dietary iron
- failure to absorb iron, e.g. malabsorption such as coeliac disease
- excessive iron demands due to blood loss
- polycythaemia rubra vera (PRV)
- cyanotic congenital heart disease
Investigations should include:
- urinalysis
- coeliac screening
- upper GI endoscopy (UGIE)
- sigmoidoscopy unless malignancy or coeliac disease is diagnosed with UGIE
- colonoscopy may replace sigmoidoscopy in some centres
-<li>failure to absorb iron, e.g. malabsorption such as <a href="/articles/coeliac-disease-1">coeliac disease</a>- +<li>failure to absorb iron, e.g. malabsorption such as <a title="Coeliac disease" href="/articles/coeliac-disease-1">coeliac disease</a>
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