Anemia Clinical Presentation

Anemia

• Deficiency of intrinsic factor leads to decreased absorption of vitamin B12, resulting in pernicious anemia.
• Anemia is often associated with malignant, infectious, or inflammatory processes, tissue injury, and conditions that release proinflammatory cytokines.

Clinical Presentation of Anemia

• Acute-onset anemia: cardiorespiratory symptoms, including palpitations, angina, orthostatic light-headedness, and breathlessness.
• Chronic anemia: weakness, fatigue, headache, orthopnea, dyspnea on exertion, vertigo, faintness, cold sensitivity, and pallor.

Clinical Presentation of Iron Deficiency Anemia (IDA)

• Glossal pain, smooth tongue, reduced salivary flow, pica (compulsive eating of nonfood items), and pagophagia (compulsive eating of ice).

Neurologic Effects of Vitamin B12 Deficiency

• Numbness and paraesthesia may occur before hematologic changes.
• Anemia with folate deficiency is not associated with neurologic symptoms.

Diagnosis and Treatment of Anemia

• Rapid diagnosis is crucial because anemia is often a sign of underlying pathology.
• Iron, cobalamin, and folic acid supplementation may improve response to erythropoietin-stimulating agent (ESA) treatment.
• Potential toxicities of exogenous ESA administration include increased blood pressure, nausea, headache, fever, bone pain, and fatigue.