REACTIVE CHANGES IN COMPLETE BLOOD COUNT AND BASIC TREATMENTOF IRON DEFICIENCY ANEMIA

• Main Authors: Barbara Skopec, Samo Zver
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Slovenian Medical Association 2008-04-01
• Series: Zdravniški Vestnik
• Online Access: http://vestnik.szd.si/index.php/ZdravVest/article/view/896

BACKGROUND Iron deficiency anemia is the most frequently encountered type of anemia and is often thecause of visit to the outpatient clinic. Besides the expected changes in complete blood count,we were interested in reactive thrombocytosis and leucopenia in analyzed patients. METHODS We retrospectively analyzed 35 patients diagnosed with microcytic anemia, that were sentto our outpatient clinic in the period of 21 months. The average age was 41 years, rangingfrom 21 to 74 years. There were 34 females and one male in the group. We only includedpatients with initial and follow-up laboratory test results that included complete bloodcount, serum iron, ferritin levels, and total iron binding capacity (TIBC). RESULTS After oral iron replacement therapy, the blood hemoglobin levels and serum ferritin levelsreturned to the normal range in all our patients. Initially, thrombocytosis was present in20/35 patients and persisted only in 4 after successful treatment. There was only one caseof initial leucopenia that was corrected with iron deficiency anemia correction. CONCLUSIONS Iron deficiency anemia is often accompanied by reactive thrombocytosis and not so oftenby leucopenia. In most cases they are transient if the treatment of iron deficiency anemia issuccessful