Any GPs who could explain something to me please...

[Janey654]

I went to give blood the other day and was sent home because I was anaemic.
My GP did a blood test with everything being normal except for these results:

Serum ferritin 8.7 ug/L
ay 8.7 speak

HB 10.3
Haematocrit 34.8%
Mean Corpuscular volume (MCV) 75.7 fL
Mean corpuscular haemoglobin (MCH) 22.4 pg

I have typed it out as it is on the sheet, hope it makes sense.

He has now sent me to a haemotologist to get the results investigated. Please can you explain why? To the untrained eye it just looks like I need shed loads of iron (am not veggie and apart from too much sugar my diet is pretty balanced). So why can be not treat me? Thanks for reading.

Bump.

I am not a doctor but I can google and understand the units. You clearly do need iron but I guess they want to know why you are iron deficient rather than just curing the symptom. This is surely a good thing.

It looks like you have microcytic anaemia (cells too small) which is the normal (and less dangerous) kind and the mass of iron in each cell is too low. Your haematocrit (also known as packed cell volume) is also slightly low which means less of your total blood volume is made up of less red blood cells than normal.

To be honest, I am surprised you have been referred to a haematologist as these do not seem extreme results. They may be concerned about blood loss from somewhere (menstrual? gut?) and want to rule it out. Also, if you have a normal diet and no haemorrhage, they may want to see why you are not absorbing iron properly, which may entail more tests.

Just my best guesses, I am sure someone better medically qualified will be along soon. It is good, though, that your doc wants you properly checked out and not just fobbing you off with iron tablets, surely?

Thanks Larry. Yes I can google too but the info out there is a bit overwhelming.

It is good to treat the cause but I am a little frustrated that he won't give iron in the meantime as I am very tired - although he says not from the anaemia- and I won't be able to see a haemotologist for many weeks. If I am losing blood somewhere I presume it will be gut not menstrual as I don't have any periods (mirena fitted).

The thing about these tests is that they indicate what the problem is, not the underlying cause. The best way of getting iron is rare meat, anyway. Try and eat lots of rare steaks in the interim!

Not sure how he can rule out you being tired from the anaemia, though. That sounds like he is going beyond his area of expertise.

Apparently I'm not anaemic enough to be tired!

He said he suspects I am tired 'because I'm a mum' patronising git.

I can't eat rare meat I'll just have to mainline dark chocolate

Firstly whilst Dr Goggle can give you average normals no blood results should be interpreted without a particular lab's set of normals.
Looks like a monochromic microcytic anaemia U&Es and white cell results would give clues to most likely cause.
Examination of you would give other clues. First rule of interpreting lab results should always be done with references to history and clinical examination.

There were averages next to each number and the ones I posted were highlighted as out of the average range.
White cell count and U and Es are all in the normal range.
Maybe that is why GP was confused . He didn't examine me but asked if my bowels were fine (which they are )