Iron deficiency anemia is a disease characterized by a decrease in the level of hemoglobin in the blood. According to the results of research in the world, about 2 billion people suffer from this form of anemia of varying severity.
Most affected by this disease are children and lactating women: every third child in the world suffers from anemia, almost all the lactating women have anemia of varying degrees.
This anemia was first described in 1554, and the drugs for its treatment were first applied in 1600. It is a serious problem that threatens the health of society, as it has no small impact on working capacity, behavior, mental and physiological development.
This significantly reduces social activity, but, unfortunately, anemia is often underestimated, because gradually a person gets used to reducing iron stores in his body.
Causes of iron deficiency anemia
What it is? Among the causes of iron deficiency anemia are several. Often there is a combination of reasons.
The lack of iron is often experienced by people whose body requires an increased dose of this trace element. This phenomenon is observed with increased body growth (in children and adolescents), as well as during pregnancy and lactation.
The presence of a sufficient level of iron in the body largely depends on what we eat. If the diet is unbalanced, the intake of food is irregular, consumed completely different foods, then in aggregate all this will cause a lack of iron intake into the body with food. By the way, the main food sources of iron - meat: meat, liver, fish. Relatively a lot of iron in eggs, beans, beans, soy, peas, nuts, mushrooms, spinach, prunes, pomegranate, buckwheat, black bread.
Why does iron deficiency anemia occur, and what is it? The main causes of this ailment are as follows:
- Inadequate intake with iron nutrition, especially in newborns.
- Violation of the absorption processes.
- Chronic blood loss.
- Increase in the need for iron with intensive growth in adolescents, during pregnancy and lactation.
- Intravascular hemolysis with hemoglobinuria.
- Violation of iron transport.
Even a minimal bleeding of 5-10 ml / day will result in the loss of 200-250 ml of blood per month, which corresponds to approximately 100 mg of iron. And if the source of latent bleeding is not established, which is difficult because of the absence of clinical symptoms, then in 1-2 years the patient may develop iron deficiency anemia.
This process occurs faster in the presence of other predisposing factors (impaired absorption of iron, inadequate intake, etc.).
How is ZHDA developing?
- The body mobilizes iron stock. Anemia is not present, complaints are not present, the deficiency of ferritin at research can be revealed.
- Tissue and transport iron are mobilized, hemoglobin synthesis is preserved. Anemia is not present, there is a dry skin, muscle weakness, dizziness, signs of gastritis. The examination reveals a deficiency of serum iron and a decrease in the saturation of transferrin.
- All funds suffer. There is anemia, the amount of hemoglobin decreases, and then of red blood cells.
Degrees
The degree of anemia is iron deficient in hemoglobin content:
- light - hemoglobin does not lower below 90 g / l;
- average - 70-90 g / l;
- heavy - hemoglobin below 70 g / l.
The normal level of hemoglobin in the blood:
- in women - 120-140 g / l;
- in men - 130-160 g / l;
- in newborns - 145-225 g / l;
- in children 1 month. - 100-180 g / l;
- in children 2 months. - 2 years. - 90-140 g / l;
- in children 2-12 years old - 110-150 g / l;
- in children 13-16 years of age - 115-155 g / l.
At the same time, clinical signs of anemia severity do not always correspond to the severity of anemia according to laboratory criteria. Therefore, a classification of anemia according to the severity of clinical symptoms is proposed.
- 1 degree - no clinical symptoms;
- 2 degree - moderately expressed weakness, dizziness;
- 3 degree - there are all clinical signs of anemia, impaired ability to work;
- 4 degree - represents a serious state of precoma;
- 5 degree - is called "anemic coma", lasts several hours and leads to a lethal outcome.
Signs of the latent stage
Latent (latent) iron deficiency in the body can lead to the appearance of symptoms of sideropenic (iron deficiency) syndrome. They have the following character:
- muscle weakness, fatigue;
- loss of attention, headaches after mental stress;
- gravitation to salty and spicy, spicy food;
- sore throat;
- dry pale skin, pallor of mucous membranes;
- fragility and pallor of the nail plates;
- dull hair.
Somewhat later, anemic syndrome develops, the severity of which is due to the level of hemoglobin and erythrocytes in the body, as well as the rate of anemia (the faster it develops, the more pronounced will be the clinical manifestations), the compensatory capabilities of the organism (in children and the elderly they are less developed) and the presence of concomitant diseases.
Symptoms of iron deficiency anemia
Iron deficiency anemia develops slowly, so its symptoms are not always pronounced. With anemia, the nails often fracture, deform and break, hair breaks, the skin becomes dry and pale, jaunts appear in the corners of the mouth, there is weakness, malaise, dizziness, headache, flies flies before the eyes, fainting.
Very often, patients with anemia experience a change in taste, an irresistible craving for non-food products such as chalk, clay, raw meat. Many people start to attract sharp smells, for example, gasoline, enamel paint, acetone. The complete picture of the disease is revealed only after a general blood test for the main biochemical indicators.
Diagnostics of IDA
In typical cases, the diagnosis of iron deficiency anemia is not difficult. Often, the disease is detected in the analysis, handed over quite on another occasion.
In a general blood test performed by hand, a decrease in hemoglobin, blood color index, and hematocrit is detected. When the OAB is performed on the analyzer, the changes are found in erythrocyte indices, which characterize the hemoglobin content in erythrocytes and the size of the erythrocytes.
The detection of such changes is the reason for the study of iron metabolism. More details of the evaluation of iron metabolism are disclosed in the article devoted to iron deficiency.
Treatment of iron deficiency anemia
In all cases of iron deficiency anemia, before starting treatment, it is necessary to establish the immediate cause of this condition and the ability to eliminate it (most often to eliminate the source of blood loss or to conduct therapy for a major disease complicated by sideropenia).
Treatment of iron deficiency anemia in children and adults should be pathogenetically grounded, integrated and targeted only on the elimination of anemia as a symptom, but also on the elimination of iron deficiency and the replenishment of its reserves in the body.
The classical scheme of treatment of anemia:
- elimination of etiologic factor;
- organization of proper nutrition;
- reception of iron preparations;
- prevention of complications and relapses of the disease.
With the correct organization of the above procedures, you can expect to get rid of the pathology within a few months.
Preparations of iron
In most cases, iron deficiency is eliminated with the help of iron salts. The most affordable drug, which is treated with iron deficiency anemia to date is iron sulfate in tablets, it contains 60 mg of iron, and take it 2-3 times a day.
Good absorption properties have other iron salts, such as gluconate, fumarate, lactate. Considering that with food the absorption of inorganic iron is reduced by 20-60%, it is better to take such medicines before meals.
Possible side effectsfrom iron preparations:
- metallic taste in the mouth;
- discomfort in the abdomen;
- constipation;
- diarrhea;
- nausea and / or vomiting.
The duration of treatment depends on the ability of the patient's body to absorb iron and continues until the laboratory blood counts (erythrocyte, hemoglobin, color index, serum iron level and iron-binding capacity).
After elimination of signs of iron deficiency anemia, the use of the same drug is recommended, but in a reduced prophylactic dose, both as the main focus of treatment is not so much the elimination of signs of anemia, how many are the iron deficiency in the body.
Diet
Diet in iron deficiency anemia is the consumption of foods rich in iron.
Full nutrition is shown with the obligatory inclusion in the diet of products containing heme iron (veal, beef, lamb, rabbit meat, liver, tongue). It should be remembered that the enhancement of ferrosorption in the gastrointestinal tract is promoted by ascorbic, citric, succinic acid. Inhibit the absorption of iron oxalates and polyphenols (coffee, tea, soy protein, milk, chocolate), calcium, dietary fiber, etc. substance.
However, no matter how much we eat meat, only 2.5 mg of iron per day will get into the blood from it - this is how much the organism can absorb. And from iron-containing complexes is absorbed in 15-20 times more - that's why with the help of diet alone, the problem of anemia does not always work out.
Conclusion
Iron deficiency anemia is a dangerous condition that requires an adequate approach to treatment. Only a long reception of iron preparations and elimination of the cause of bleeding will lead to getting rid of the pathology.
To avoid serious complications from treatment, you should constantly monitor laboratory blood tests throughout the course of therapy of the disease.
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