Utility of microcytic anemia factor and low hemoglobin density in the diagnosis of iron deficiency in blood donors / 中华检验医学杂志

Objective:The study was planned to evaluate the clinical utility of microcytic anemia factor (MAF) and low hemoglobin density (LHD%) in the screening of iron deficiency in blood donors.Methods:A total of 400 blood donors, 200 male and 200 female, were randomly admitted to Fujian Blood Center from January1, 2022 to February 28, 2022 by the way of stratified sampling. According to the fourth edition of Diagnostic and therapeutic criteria for hematological diseases, the patients were divided into three groups: normal group (N=299), iron depletion group (ID, n=54) and iron deficient erythropoiesis group (IDE, n=47), Blood routine indexes including hemoglobin (HGB), mean corpuscular volume hemoglobin (MCV), mean corpuscular hemoglobin content (MCH), mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration (MCHC) and iron metabolism indexes including serum ferritin (SF), serum iron (SI), total iron binding capacity (TIBC), transferrin saturation (TS) and unsaturated iron binding capacity (UIBC) were measured, MAF and LHD% were calculated by formula.One-way ANOVA or Kruskal-Wallis H tests were used to analyze the differences among three groups. Spearman correlation analysis was used to analyze the correlation between MAF and LHD% and iron metabolism indexes.The Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curve was used to evaluated the diagnostic value of MCH, MCHC, MAF and LHD% for iron deficiency in blood donors. Results:MAF in ID group which was 11.81±0.81 were higher than the IDE group which was 10.69±0.95 and lower than the healthy group which was 13.17±1.24, the total difference among the three groups was statistically significant ( F=110.784, P<0.001), the difference between two groups was statistically significant ( P<0.01); LHD% in ID group which was 2.61 (1.87, 3.91)% were lower than the IDE group which was5.60(2.99, 8.02)% and higher than the healthy group which was1.74 (1.22, 2.73)%, the total difference among the three groups was statistically significant ( H=62.166, P<0.001), the difference between two groups was statistically significant ( P<0.01).In 101 iron deficiency blood donors, Spearman correlation analysis showed that MAF was positively correlated with SF, SI and TS ( r=0.426, P<0.01; r=0.547, P<0.01; r=0.566, P<0.01);contrarily, LHD% was negatively correlated with SF, SI and TS ( r=-0.397, P<0.01; r=-0.400, P<0.01; r=-0.479, P<0.01).The areas under the ROC curve of MCH, MCHC, MAF and LHD% diagnostic ID were 0.745, 0.646, 0.819 and 0.646, respectively;the cut-off value of MAF was 12.56, with a sensitivity of 67.90% and a specificity of 83.30%.While the areas under the ROC curve of MCH, MCHC, MAF and LHD% diagnostic IDE were 0.901, 0.834, 0.941 and 0.834, respectively; the cut-off value of MAF was 11.73, with a sensitivity of 87.60% and a specificity of 87.20%. Conclusions:MAF performed a high diagnostic value of iron deficiency, especially IDE, and can be used as a marker in the diagnosis of iron deficiency in blood donors.

Helicobacter pylori associated to unexplained or refractory iron deficiency anemia: an Egyptian single-center experience

ABSTRACT Background: Refractory or unexplained iron deficiency anemia accounts for about 15% of all cases. The endoscopic gastrointestinal workup sometimes fails to establish the cause of iron deficiency anemia and a considerable proportion of patients regardless of risk category fail to respond to oral iron supplementation. The aim of the present study was to assess the etiological role of Helicobacter pylori infection in adult Egyptian patients with unexplained or refractory iron deficiency anemia. Methods: A case controlled study was composed of 104 iron deficiency anemia cases and 70 age- and gender-matched healthy controls. Patients were diagnosed with iron deficiency anemia according to hemoglobin, mean corpuscular volume, serum ferritin, and transferrin saturation. Upper and lower endoscopies were performed and active H. pylori infection was investigated by testing for the H. pylori antigen in stool specimens. Hematological response to H. pylori treatment with triple therapy together with iron therapy (n = 32) or only iron therapy (n = 32) were assessed in patients with H. pylori infection. Results: H. pylori infection was more prevalent in patients with unexplained or refractory iron deficiency anemia (61.5%). Of the different hematological parameters investigated, there was a significant correlation only between H. pylori infection and mean corpuscular volume (p-value 0.046). Moreover, there was a significant correlation between receiving triple therapy together with iron supplementation and improvements in the hematological parameters [hemoglobin (p-value < 0.001), mean corpuscular volume (p-value < 0.001), iron (p-value < 0.001) and serum ferritin (p-value < 0.001)] compared to receiving iron supplementation alone. Conclusions: Failing to test for H. pylori infection could lead to a failure to identify a treatable cause of anemia and could lead to additional and potentially unnecessary investigations. Furthermore, treatment of H. pylori infection together with iron supplementation gives a more rapid and satisfactory response.

Prevalence of anemia in schools of the metropolitan region of Curitiba, Brazil

ABSTRACT Background: Anemia during childhood is one of the biggest public health problems worldwide, including Brazil. Insufficient or abnormal production of hemoglobin, loss of iron and excessive destruction of red blood cells are the most common causes of anemia. Among the reasons of anemia, iron deficiency accounts for 50% of anemia cases in developing countries. Affected individuals present a wide range of clinical problems, including delayed neuropsychomotor progression, impaired cellular immunity and reduction of intellectual capacity. This study aimed to evaluate the prevalence of anemia in children attending public schools in the metropolitan region of Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil. Method: A retrospective study was conducted of 409 children aged 8-12 years old included in an extension project of the Universidade Federal do Paraná. The results of complete blood count and hemoglobin electrophoresis of all children were evaluated. Anemia was considered when the hemoglobin levels were <11.5 g/dL. Results: The prevalence of anemia was found to be 2.2% of the population studied, with hypochromic microcytic anemia being the most common type. Seven children had sickle cell trait and one had β-thalassemia. Conclusion: The prevalence of anemia in this study was considered normal according the World Health Organization classification, which is different from the data found in other Brazilian regions.

2 Cases of Beta-thalassemia Minor in Korea / 임상소아혈액종양

In Korea, recent epidemiologic studies show that the incidence of β-thalassemia is increasing as the influx of South-East Asian population increases and molecular technologies develop. However, many patients are still misdiagnosed as iron deficiency anemia (IDA). All patients with microcytic anemia need to perform evaluation including reticulocyte index, Mentzer index, and iron studies. Considering the increasing incidence of β-thalassemia, hemoglobin beta globulin (HBB) gene sequencing should be performed if suspicious. In our cases, patients whose parents were both Koreans were confirmed to have β-thalassemia with a substitution in c1, ATG>GTG, and deletion of the HBB gene. In Korea, initiation condon ATG>AGG (20.9%) is most common mutation, followed by codon 17 (A>T) (17.6%), codon 121 (G>T) (12.1%), and so on. We report two cases of β-thalassemia diagnosed by genetic testing for microcytic anemia.

2 Cases of Beta-thalassemia Minor in Korea / 임상소아혈액종양

In Korea, recent epidemiologic studies show that the incidence of β-thalassemia is increasing as the influx of South-East Asian population increases and molecular technologies develop. However, many patients are still misdiagnosed as iron deficiency anemia (IDA). All patients with microcytic anemia need to perform evaluation including reticulocyte index, Mentzer index, and iron studies. Considering the increasing incidence of β-thalassemia, hemoglobin beta globulin (HBB) gene sequencing should be performed if suspicious. In our cases, patients whose parents were both Koreans were confirmed to have β-thalassemia with a substitution in c1, ATG>GTG, and deletion of the HBB gene. In Korea, initiation condon ATG>AGG (20.9%) is most common mutation, followed by codon 17 (A>T) (17.6%), codon 121 (G>T) (12.1%), and so on. We report two cases of β-thalassemia diagnosed by genetic testing for microcytic anemia.

Serum Ferritin and Severity Scores in Sickle Cell Disease Patients in Nnewi (South East Nigeria).

Background: Sickle cell disease (SCD) patients have mechanisms that are thought to protect them more than apparently normal individuals from iron deficiency. However, evidence exists that in SCD, hypoferritinaemia may be more prevalent than hyperferitinaemia, especially in developing countries. Methods: Serum ferritin (SF) levels were measured - using an ELISA based kit (Biocheck, USA), and disease severity calculated in fifty- two asymptomatic steady state (ASS) SCD patients; who were iron chelation naive and both parameters correlated. Erythrocyte morphology and malaria parasitaemia were assessed, patients with parasitaemia were excluded. 64 apparently normal individuals in the same environment and socioeconomic group were also assessed as above and served as controls. Statistical analysis was done using SPSS version 20. Results were expressed as means and standard error of mean. Level of significance was set at p= 0.05. Results: 30.7% and 7.6% of the test subjects had hypoferritinaemia and hyperferritinaemia respectively compared to controls, where 56% had hypoferritinaemia and none had hyperferritinaemia. Erythrocyte morphology showed hypochromia and microcytosis to different degrees in all test subjects assessed: 1+ (10.5%), 2+ (63.2%) and 3+ (26.3%), while only 5% of controls had hypochromia and microcytosis. Blood transfusion and age did not seem to significantly affect SF levels (p= 0.65 and 0.93) respectively. SF levels increased progressively with disease severity but didn’t reach statistical significance (p=0.29). Conclusion: The results suggest that hypoferritinaemia is more prevalent than hyperferitinaemia, and that SF levels may be a useful index for computing an objective severity score in SCD management. Anaemia of chronic inflammation may cause a significant part of the anaemia in SCD.

Iron-deficiency anemia in children: from diagnosis to treatment

Iron-deficiency anemia (IDA) is the most frequent hematologic and nutritional disorder in children. The risk factors associated with IDA in children are rapid growth with inadequate dietary iron, low birth weight, premature birth, perinatal bleeding, early cow's milk intake, and breastfeeding beyond 6 months without iron supplementation. Blood loss is also an important cause of IDA. Most children with IDA are asymptomatic and may go undiagnosed. The diagnosis of IDA is confirmed by microcytic hypochromic anemia and a low level of serum ferritin. Monitoring the response to iron supplementation is a reasonable intervention for a clinically stable child with mild anemia and inadequate iron intake. IDA must be differentiated from the anemia that arises from chronic disease and thalassemia. Oral iron is usually recommended as first-line therapy. Parenteral iron is indicated in cases of poor compliance or failure of oral iron, intestinal malabsorption, or chronic bleeding.