Important Anemia & Ferritin Info

I just went through a really bad week convinced I had MS. I'm having muscle spasms and debilitating fatigue (I'm usually VERY active) and I could not get out of bed to shower.

I had blood work saying hemoglobin or Iron good, potassium good, magnesium good. Doctor suggested I see a neurologist. So with the spasms I researched MS for a full day - wasted.

Then I remembered my ferritin was 4 and I've been craving ice like crazy so I looked it up.

The best way to see whether you have an iron deficiency is by measuring your level of ferritin

Your hemoglobin can be great and you can still be very anemia with low ferritin.

Because doctors don't know much about anemia many patients with the symptoms of low iron tend to be ignored by physicians unless it is also accompanied by a low hemoglobin (this is termed anemia, or iron deficiency anemia).

?The problem with this treatment paradigm is that many patients who are obviously symptomatic tend to get ignored when all they need is some iron supplementation to increase their ferritin.

Hope this helps someone else.

BYW, My surgeon did my gastric bypass even though w week before I was very anemic. My hemoglobin was 4 after surgery hospitalized for a full month because of pancrititus. He never once mentioned anemia. The surgeon actually said, "Why are you in bed you should be walking around" When I got out and went to the MD I needed a blood transfusion. The MD could not believe they did not infuse me in the hospital.

An even better way to see whether you have an iron deficiency is by talking to a hematologist.

Truth. However, getting in to see one is often very difficult.

this same exact thing happened to me; the doctor kept telling me I was fine until they refer me to a hematologist my ferritin was also a 4 and she did an emergency infusion and then 4 followed, that was last year and I am scheduled for a round of 3 more this month. since my ferritin dropped again during this past months,

Is important to ask for that ferritin test number and don't ignore your symptoms.

thank you for raising awareness!

I am about to have blood drawn for the first time since leaving the hospital 5 months ago. My ferritin level will tested, along with everything else. How often is it advised to have your ferritin tested, if lab results are within a normal range?

My first 1.5 years out I used an over abundance of caution and had labs drawn every three months. I did every it 6 months after that, and now I just go once a year. ( 4.5 years out ) My numbers are good and steady, but if I start feeling any symptoms like unexplainable tiredness, dizziness, tingling hands, headaches, etc..the first thing I would want my doctor to do is run labs to see if I've become deficient in anything.

At the very least, you need yearly labs done for the rest of your life, but if you show any low numbers, you need to have them drawn sooner than that to make sure any low level is rising. ( this is also when you'd talk to your surgeon or PCP about adjusting supplement doses. )

You also want to keep a record of all of your numbers to compare years and keep track of trends.

Thank you Audrey!

I've been dealing with iron deficiency anemia since about 2 years post-op from my DS (I'm 14+ years post-op). For the ladies who are pre-menopausal, you may always have issues with anemia simply because you are bleeding every month.

You must track your ferritin and find a hematologist/oncologist who understands malabsorption (if that is something you are dealing with either with a DS or RNY).

Don't wait until you show symptoms (particularly pica symptoms - craving ice in particular).

I don't bother with oral iron (I don't absorb it). My hematologist feels that anything below 100 requires an infusion. I had two infusions back in the spring (first ones in about 3 years) and I'm now getting ready to have annual labs done. Hopefully my iron is still in the normal range (not showing any symptoms).

Back when I was first diagnosed with anemia, I was considering a uterine ablation, but first had to deal with some pesky fibroids. Had a procedure called a fibroid embolization. One of the potential side effects was early menopause (I was in my early 50's at the time). I had the fibroid embolization and ultimately did go into menopause, so no more bleeding, which absolutely helped my anemia. Seems that, for me, infusions last approximately 3 years, which is fine for me.

I have similar problems. I get symptoms when my ferritin gets low, even if my other labs are good. My hemoglobin is over 13, but my ferritin is 20 and I'm sooooo cold, fatigued, and have regular headaches. My ferritin has been as low as 4 before, but only since my RNY have I felt the symptoms. I'm going for my second set of iron infusions soon. Just got the ok from the hematologist. I highly recommend seeing one. They understand and are more likely to treat low ferritin than surgeons or primary care doctors.

Best of luck.

I thought we could not have transfusion is iron is normal. I'm in bed waiting for liquid iron to kick in.