A big greeting Stem Social community, thank you very much in advance to those who like to read my publication, I always dedicate time to generate content that can be helpful for everyone, not only for the scientific community, but for anyone who wants to know in a simple way some medical topics.
So this time I want to share information on a topic that is actually quite common, but that is handled the most common and sometimes the causes are usually so diverse that obviously the solution will not be the same for each presentation, I would like to talk about anemia, but not iron deficiency anemia, which is the most common, but others that also occur regularly and can not be treated in the same way, read on and find out why.
The concept that is most commonly handled of what anemia is is "the decrease in the value of hemoglobin" and this is partially true, because it may be in normal values but it has a problem in its structure, and does not comply with its function.
To clarify this point, it is necessary to keep in mind that the hemorrhage is a protein, it has an Iron molecule in the center, and this is where the Oxygen (O2) binds. This is taken to the different sites of the organism, where it is transferred to the cells, and internally it passes to the mitochondria, cellular organelles, where it is used to produce energy. That is why when there is not enough oxygen circulating due to a decrease in hemoglobin levels, people feel weak.
But not only that, you can also notice that they turn pale, brittle hair and nails, little strength, loss of appetite, desire to sleep permanently, as well as other signs.
But it turns out that not only is iron or folic acid deficiency the cause of anemia, but there are other much more complex reasons, some even incurable, because they are genetic, where you can only treat the symptoms but the cause will be always there.
For example, when it comes to anemia due to decreased iron levels, intake must be assessed, because it may be that not enough is being consumed, and an adjustment must be made in this regard, indicating iron in tablets. But it may also be that there is a problem at the gastrointestinal level and there is not proper absorption despite adequate intake.
But in a case such as thalassemia, which is a hereditary disease in which hemoglobin has an abnormal shape, and is not capable of transporting oxygen properly, the red blood cells are destroyed due to the abnormality in their shape, In this case, increasing the intake of iron and folic acid really has practically no weight in this disease, the anemia will be permanent, and there is also no definitive cure, since the abnormality is written in the DNA of each one of the cells.
The solution that is presented in many cases is blood transfusion with a certain frequency, and this allows the red blood cells and, obviously, the transfused hemoglobin, to do their job adequately during their lifetime, and it will not be destroyed since it will not has an abnormal structure.
We have the case of idiopathic aplastic anemia, this type luckily is less common. It is characterized by an abnormal function of the bone marrow, which does not produce enough blood cells, including not only red blood cells but also white blood cells.
Any disease that includes the word "idiopathic" in its name indicates that its origin is unknown. Such is the case of this where the bone marrow is affected, which is that tissue that is found inside some bones and is where blood cells are produced.
However, it is known that there are substances, medications, radiation, that can affect the bone marrow and prevent it from producing the necessary cells. In this case, logically there is no easy way to cure this condition. But at least there is the possibility of a bone marrow transplant, which is not a definitive solution, it can help a lot.
With these two cases that I have mentioned, I hope it becomes clear that even when it comes to anemia, the reality is that there is no single cure or treatment for all types of presentation, since the cause is totally different.
But reaching these diagnoses is not usually that easy, that is why it is sometimes very long to determine the cause, since in general there is a tendency to assume what is more common, "iron deficiency anemia", so indicates treatment with iron and folic acid for three months, that time passes and there is no improvement, later a hematologist can be sent to be more specific in the diagnostic tests, and finally be able to have a diagnosis.
But this process can take up to 6 months, with the necessary resources for the exams, if not, it can be longer. Especially if people self-medicate and even postpone the visit to the general practitioner.
As you can see, everything is a process, but once you have a diagnosis, everyone is a little calmer, at least most of the time.
In these cases where reaching a diagnosis is not so easy, especially for the general practitioner, or ideally and better for the patient is to seek alternatives with specialists, since the idea is to help the patient solve their problem, of course, first that he find out what he has, so that he knows later what he must do, what his possibilities are, etc.
A disease can have multiple causes, as I have been showing in repeated publications, this is yet another case of what doctors can find when we face a patient with the intention of helping them.
Grateful for reading my post. Hoping, as always, that it will be of your total help.