Iron Deficiency Anemia: Causes, Symptoms, and Treatment Explained

Iron Deficiency Anemia: Causes, Symptoms, and Treatment Explained

Question. Enumerate the causes of Iron Deficiency Anemia. How will you treat iron deficiency anaemia?

Answer.

The following are the causes of iron-deficiency anemia:

1. Due to increased blood loss:

• Gastrointestinal: Peptic ulcer, piles, hookworm manifestation, carcinoma of the stomach, acute erosive gastritis, ulcerative colitis
• Lung: Due to hemoptysis
• Renal: Hemoglobinuric and hematuria
• Uterine: Menorrhagia, postmenopausal uterine bleeding.
• Nose: Epistaxis

Iron Deficiency Anemia Causes, Symptoms, and Treatment Explained

2. Due to increased body demands:

• In adolescence
• During prematurity
• In pregnancy and lactation.

3. Due to inadequate dietary intake:

• In a low socioeconomic status
• In elderly patients with loss of teeth
• Anorexia of pregnancy.

4. Decreased absorption:

1. In achlorhydria
2. In patients with malabsorption
3. In cases with gastrectomy.

Causes of Iron Deficiency Anemia and Treatment

Treatment of Iron Deficiency Anemia

• Oral iron therapy: Ferrous sulphate 200 mg TID is given in between meals. If, after taking the drug, there is any abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting or constipation, the salt is changed to ferrous gluconate or ferrous fumarate.
  Oral iron therapy should be given for 6 months. Iron absorption is enhanced by combining iron salts with hydrochloric acid, ascorbic acid, succinic acid, fructose, cysteine, isonine, and cobalt. Administration of iron after food minimizes gastric upset.
• Parenteral iron therapy: Iron sorbitol citric acid complex 1.5 mg/Kg body weight is given as IM, or Iron dextran in 5% glucose is given as IV A small test dose should be given IV before givinga  total dose. The total dose of iron should not exceed 2.5 g
• Blood transfusion: Packed red cells are transfused.