Etiological profile of anemia in a department of internal medicine

• Published in: The Pan African medical journal Vol. 26; p. 10
• Main Authors: Zinebi, Ali, Eddou, Hicham, Moudden, Karim Mohamed, Elbaaj, Mohamed
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: French
• Published: Uganda 2017
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Anemia - epidemiology; Anemia - etiology; Anemia, Hemolytic - epidemiology; Anemia, Iron-Deficiency - epidemiology; Anemia, Megaloblastic - epidemiology; Female; Hemoglobins - metabolism; Humans; Internal Medicine; Male; Middle Aged; Retrospective Studies; Sex Distribution; Young Adult; internal medicine; etiologic profile; Anemia; iron deficiency anemia
• ISSN: 1937-8688
• DOI: 10.11604/pamj.2017.26.10.11368

Anemia is a major public health problem worldwide despite remarkable improvement in living conditions. The World Health Organization (WHO) classifies it as one of the ten most serious problems in the world. This study aims to describe the epidemiologic and etiologic profiles of the cases of anemia treated during our training. We conducted a retrospective study involving 150 patients carried out over 5 years, from January 2011 to December 2015. The average age of our patients was 48.8 years and women were more likely to be affected than men, with a sex ratio of 1.78. The mean hemoglobin was 8 g/dl, ranging from 3.4 to 11.4 g/dl. Iron deficiency anemia was the leading etiologic diagnosis made in 60% of cases, followed by megaloblastic anemia in 21% of patients and haemolytic anemia in 7.33% of cases. The occurrence of anemia in adults may represent a real diagnostic challenge for the internist as it is sometimes associated with an emergency context. Specialized examinations may be necessary.