FABROA, MARIA JESSICA ERLINDA P.

BSN III

Iron Deficiency Anemia NARRATIVE PATHOPHYSIOLOGY

Anemia is a condition where there's a decrease in the number of healthy red blood cells,
or RBCs, in the body. So, iron deficiency anemia means anemia caused by a deficiency in iron.
Iron deficiency anemia can develop as a result of four main causes: decreased intake,
decreased absorption, increased demand, and increased loss.

Therefore, iron deficiency anemia is also called microcytic hypochromic anemia.

Additionally, these microcytic RBCs can’t carry enough oxygen to the tissues, and this is called
hypoxia. Hypoxia signals the bone marrow to increase RBC production. And when even that
increase doesn’t help, the bone marrow sort of goes into overdrive and pumps out incompletely
formed RBCs. As a result, red blood cells of various shapes, called poikilocytosis, and sizes,
called anisocytosis, enter the circulation.

In addition to anemia, iron deficiency also results in defective production of mitochondrial

enzymes that generate necessary ATP for growth and development, and this affects fast
growing tissues, like hair and nails, the most. Iron deficiency anemia presents with typical signs
and symptoms of anemia like pallor, palpitations, shortness of breath, and easy fatigability.
Specific symptoms for iron deficiency include koilonychia, or spooning of nails; hair loss; and
pica, which is consumption of non-food substances like clay or dirt. Sometimes iron deficiency
anemia may occur in the context of Plummer-Vinson syndrome, along with glossitis, meaning
inflammation of the tongue, and esophageal webs, which are membranes made up of damaged
esophageal epithelium and mucosa. Anemia is diagnosed using a couple of parameters in the
blood.

The short-term prognosis for most patients is excellent. However, if the underlying cause
is not corrected, the prognosis is poor. Chronic iron deficiency can lead to death from an
underlying lung or heart disorder.

REFERENCES:

Hinkle, J. L., Brunner, L. S., Suddarth, D. S., & Cheever, K. L. (2018). Brunner & Suddarth's

textbook of medical-surgical nursing. Philadelphia: Wolter Kluwer.