What happens if ferritin is low

Professional Reference articles are designed for health professionals to use. You may find the Iron supplements article more useful, or one of our other health articles. NICE has issued rapid update guidelines in relation to many of these. This guidance is changing frequently. Iron deficiency is a reduced content of total body iron. Iron-deficiency anaemia IDA occurs when the iron deficiency is sufficient to reduce erythropoiesis and therefore the haemoglobin Hb level falls.

However, problems related to iron depletion can develop before this stage. Globally, iron deficiency is the most common cause for anaemia [ 1 ]. Non-anaemic iron deficiency NAID is sometimes termed 'latent iron deficiency' or 'depleted iron stores' [ 2 ]. To avoid confusion in this article, non-anaemic iron deficiency will be referred to as 'iron depletion'. There is a separate Iron-deficiency Anaemia article. Iron depletion is more common in the developing world [ 4 ].

There may be no symptoms until significant anaemia develops. Symptoms which may be linked to iron depletion are [ 5 ] :. It is less certain who needs investigating in iron depletion, but the following information may be relevant:.

Iron is a vital mineral in the body, central to transporting oxygen around the body in the hemoglobin. A shortage of iron can cause health problems…. Learn about restless legs syndrome, including common causes, treatments, and home remedies.

This article contains the best tips on relieving symptoms. For some types of blood tests, a person may need to fast beforehand. In this article, learn about fasting for blood tests. Hyperthyroidism is a medical condition caused by high levels of thyroid hormone in the bloodstream. Learn about the causes, symptoms, and treatments…. Iron overload disorders, including hemochromatosis, cause the body to absorb too much iron.

Learn about the causes, symptoms, and treatments here. What to know about ferritin blood tests for anemia Medically reviewed by J. Keith Fisher, M. Ferritin blood test Results Increasing ferritin Lowering ferritin Procedure How to prepare Summary Ferritin is a protein in blood cells that stores iron. What is a ferritin blood test? Share on Pinterest A ferritin blood test can help a doctor diagnose conditions related to high or low iron levels.

What do the results mean? Share on Pinterest Low ferritin levels can cause headaches and pale skin. How to increase low ferritin levels. Furthermore, the diagnosis is supported by the ferritin determination and exclusion of other causes of symptoms 16 , Hypothyroidism based on symptoms is indistinguishable from iron deficiency 18 , Fatigue and neurocognitive symptoms often raise a suspicion of depression.

Furthermore, headache and muscle and joint pain associated with iron deficiency are repeatedly considered migraine and fibromyalgia syndrome, respectively 3 , The multitude of symptoms is commonly associated low ferritin concentration without anemia 1 , 17 , 20 , 21 , In addition, iron supplementation has been shown to improve fatigue and physical performance with low ferritin concentration 23 , 24 , The symptoms of iron deficiency may arise from the metabolic system where many of the proteins are iron containing 2 , 3 , 11 , 12 , The conclusion is that the supply of iron to these systems may also explain the fluctuation of symptoms as described in the cases.

Furthermore, there may a question of iron deficiency in combination with functional iron deficiency, where there is an insufficient mobilization of erythroid iron in the presence of increased requests 2 , 3 , 5.

Iron should be administrated much longer, on average 6—12 months, than only a few months, which is common practice in general care 3. Intolerance to oral iron is probably the main cause for intravenous iron therapy. Even if the severe adverse effects with the current intravenous iron preparation are rare 2 , 3 they still exist and may lead to the discontinuation of the infusion, and strategies to treat them should be planned beforehand.

In case 2, this is most probably not the cause of fluctuating symptoms, as the patients did not know the behavior of ferritin concentration when she reported the reappearance of her symptoms. The presented cases with symptoms of iron deficiency anemia as examples are demonstrating that a normal full blood count is common in association with low ferritin levels that would indicate iron deficiency. Iron deficiency irrespective of manifestation should always be treated A marked improvement or total disappearance of symptoms should decide the duration of iron treatment.

If the patient has apparently had iron deficiency for more than 5 —10 years, the ferritin concentration may repeatedly drop with the reappearance of symptoms when oral Fig. No blood donations should be allowed. Furthermore, I am convinced that there is still a lot to be discovered about iron metabolism. ETS: solely responsible for examining and treating the patients and writing this study.

Clinical Case Reports ; 6 6 : — [ Google Scholar ]. National Center for Biotechnology Information , U. Journal List Clin Case Rep v. Clin Case Rep. Published online Apr Esa T. Soppi 1. Author information Article notes Copyright and License information Disclaimer.

Soppi, Email: if. Corresponding author. This article has been cited by other articles in PMC. Key Clinical Message One should always consider iron deficiency without anemia as the cause of persisting, unexplained unspecific, often severe, symptoms, regardless of the primary underlying disease.

Keywords: Anemia, ferritin, hemoglobin, iron deficiency. Introduction Iron deficiency may be severe despite a normal hemoglobin and full blood count. Low blood ferritin indicates the depletion of iron stores and can be used to help diagnose iron deficiency anemia [ 2 ]. Iron deficiency anemia can manifest with [ 9 ]:. Several studies have shown that treatment of anemia improves cognitive function. That is because iron is a component of many essential enzymes and also red blood cells that carry oxygen to the brain.

Indeed, the correction of iron-deficiency in 73 non-anemic girls was shown to improve verbal learning and memory [ 16 ]. Multiple studies have found that low ferritin correlates with hair loss [ 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 ]. A study compared men and women with hair loss with healthy controls. The loss of iron duet to chronic intestinal bleeding in inflammatory bowel disease IBD may exceed the amount of iron that can be absorbed from the diet, resulting in a negative iron balance [ 9 ].

In fact, anemia is a common complication associated with inflammatory bowel disease IBD. Also, scientists estimate that one-third of inflammatory bowel disease IBD patients suffer from recurrent anemia [ 9 ]. Almost every anemic patient with IBD shows some degree of iron deficiency as a consequence of dietary restrictions, malabsorption, or intestinal bleeding [ 18 ].

However, inflammation is why some anemic IBD patients can have elevated ferritin. A hs-CRP test can be used in such cases to exclude inflammation.