Miss April's Health Situation: Anemia Paper Example

Anemia is a blood disorder. The World Health Organization (WHO) defines anemia as the condition in which the number of red blood cells in the body is insufficient to carry out physiological needs (Alli, Vaughan, & Patel, 2017). Anemia is one of the diseases that practitioners encounter with regularly, and it is ranked as one of the common disorders globally. Approximately, 1.6 billion people in the world have been diagnosed with anemia. The causes of anemia are different, and the disease manifests itself in various forms. Some of the known types of anemia include sickle-cell anemia, iron deficiency anemia, aplastic anemia, hemolytic anemia, thalassemia, pernicious anemia, and fanconi anemia. The essay is an analysis of Miss April who has been diagnosed with iron deficiency anemia. The focus will be on the general information regarding the disease and the type of treatment for the patient.

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Iron deficiency anemia is the type of anemia that results from a lack of iron in the body. It is the most common nutritional deficiency worldwide. Iron deficiency anemia has significant consequences on the health of the patient. Some of the well-known symptoms of iron deficiency anemia include dizziness, shortness of breath, pale appearance, psychological depression, increased food cravings, a fast heartbeat, and heavy menstrual bleeding. In the case study, Miss April notes increased shortness of breath, low levels of energy and enthusiasm, increased heartbeat, and increased menstrual pains. The symptoms of Miss April are similar to that of iron deficiency anemia; hence, it is logical to conduct an iron deficiency diagnosis on the patient.

The proper diagnosis of iron deficiency anemia is the serum iron test (Clarke, & Dodds, 2014). The tests are quick, easy, and inexpensive. The reliable marker that determines iron levels is serum ferritin. Miss April should undergo the serum iron test to determine the levels of iron. According to Clarke and Dodds (2014), if the serum ferritin level is less than 15 ug/L, it is an indication of iron deficiency. The results of the serum ferritin should be compared with the iron indices for proper interpretation of the results. Serum ferritin levels are not enough to rule the presence of iron deficiency anemia; the doctor should also look out for the C-reactive protein levels. The C-reactive may help to determine coexisting inflammation. The patient should also undergo a mean corpuscular volume (MCV). Lower MCV and mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MCH) are clear indications of iron deficiency. If the test results of Miss April indicate lower serum ferritin levels, MCV, and MCH, the patient will be eligible for iron deficiency treatment.

Conclusion

The treatment interventions that can be used to treat Miss April include iron therapy, intravenous iron, and red cell transfusion. In iron therapy, Miss April should be provided with doses of 100 to 200mg of elemental iron in two to three divided doses (Clarke, & Dodds, 2014). Reticulocytosis is expected to occur within seventy-two hours of treatment, and the hemoglobin levels are expected to rise to 20g/L every week. The iron therapy should continue for three to six months until the hemoglobin levels have normalized; thus, increasing the iron stores. Intravenous iron should also be introduced when the oral iron is ineffective. The treatment is expensive and is necessary when the patient has been diagnosed with celiac disease, alveolar capillary dysplasia (ACD), or autoimmune gastritis (Jimenz, KulnigDabsch, & Gasche, 2015). Miss April is also experiencing menorrhagia and dysmenorrheal, which are menstrual disorders causing the heavy flow of blood for extended periods. In this case, Miss April is likely to undergo red cell transfusion to replace the red blood cells that are iron deficient.

References

Alli, N., Vaughan, J., & Patel, M. (2017). Anaemia: Approach to diagnosis. SAMJ: South African Medical Journal, 107(1), pp.23-27.

Clarke, L., & Dodds, A, J. (2014). Iron deficiency anemia. Cause, symptoms, and treatment. Medicine Today, 15(11), pp.36-42.

Jimenez, K., Kulnigg-Dabsch, S., & Gasche, C. (2015). Management of iron deficiency anemia. Gastroenterology & Hepatology, 11(4), pp.241-250.